


I May Throw Up on You (And All the Crazy Shit Bones Says)

by MrsEclipse9856



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Academy Era, F/M, Female James T. Kirk, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-04
Updated: 2015-07-07
Packaged: 2018-04-07 15:37:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 82
Words: 114,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4268817
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsEclipse9856/pseuds/MrsEclipse9856
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Some of the things that a doctor's son from Georgia says to a hero's daughter from Iowa. Academy fic. Fem!Kirk/Bones with appearances by Uhura, Pike, Gaila and more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. I May Throw Up on You

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own them, I just play with them.

"I may throw up on you," the man who dropped into the seat next to her said. Jamie looked at him and chuckled, he can't be serious.

"These things are pretty safe," she said to him.

He rolled his eyes, "Don't pander to me kid, one tiny crack in the hull and our blood boils in thirteen seconds. A solar flare might crop up, cook us in our seats, and while you're sitting pretty with a case of Andorian shingles, see if you're still so relaxed when your eyeballs are bleeding. Space is disease and danger, wrapped in darkness and silence."

Kid? She couldn't be that much younger than him, five or six years, tops. Jamie thought her view on the universe was screwed up –it wasn't, she's seen some shit– until this scruffy, yet very hot, doctor plopped down in the seat next to her after Captain Pike's flight officer pulled him from the tiny bathroom. He has some major issues with space if that's how he viewed a quick hop from Iowa to California.

"Well I hate to break this to you, but Starfleet operates in space," Jamie replied. She wasn't sure why she was having a conversation with him, if he couldn't even ride in a shuttle, he won't last long at Starfleet Academy.

He didn't disappoint, "Yeah, well... I've got nowhere else to go, the ex-wife took the whole damn planet in the divorce. All I've got left is my bones."

Jamie could understand feeling lost, hell; her whole life was an exercise on how to go places without getting anywhere. She knew that she used to have a direction but she lost it somewhere fighting against Kodos' crazy. It wasn't until Captain Pike showed up and issued a challenge, " _Your father was captain of a starship for twelve minutes. He saved eight hundred lives, including your mother's and yours. I dare you to do better_ ," that she had a way to go.

She hated that he had her pegged, they only talked to each other on rare occasions; Jamie was sure that it was because he found her on Tarsus and felt guilty that George Kirk's kid was there. She knew that she'd follow her father one day, no point in putting it off any longer, everyone was expecting her to join Starfleet years ago. She had always scoffed at the idea because she knew that she was about the spend the next few years being compared to two people she didn't really know. It wasn't going to be easy but Jamie was never one to turn down a challenge and Pike knew it.

"Well, that sucks. Jamie Kirk," she introduced herself.

The guy looked at her, "McCoy. Leonard McCoy." He didn't seem like a Leonard, she was gonna have to think up a nickname for him.

They talked to each other the whole way to Starfleet HQ. Jamie thought up random stuff to talk about, she didn't want to be covered in his puke and keeping him distracted seemed to work.

"Look, San Fran." One of the random cadets said from Leo's –not sure 'bout that one- opposite side. If he could've been paler, he would've been.

"It's ok, take a deep breath. We're almost docked and then you'll be on the immovable ground." Jamie reached over and took his hand, "you got this, Leonard. Tell me about being a doctor." Jamie listened as he rattled on about his work as a surgeon and how he did research on different illnesses.

* * *

After they docked and disembarked, they both went with Pike. There was paperwork to fill out and gear to get, neither of them seemed to have much. Everything Jamie owned was in a small bag slung over her shoulder and from what she learned so far about Len -maybe- he was in the same boat. Pike took them to the administration building, they ended up sitting side by side when their turns rolled around. They weren't the only students picking up this late, but they seemed to be the oldest.

"Permanent address?" the administration officer asked.

Jamie shook her head, "Don't have one."

The officer looked at her like she was crazy, "I mean your address before joining Starfleet."

Jamie nodded, "I understood the question. I don't have one, I was staying with a friend and I don't have any living relatives." What she said seemed to have caught the attention of half the room. Captain Pike rattled off an address at the officer that Jamie didn't recognize, if she had to guess, it was his place. She mouthed her thanks to him before she continued to answer the rest of the officers questions. They put her, Leonard and the others in a room to take an exam.

Usually, it took days to get into the academy, a mess of tests, physicals and psych evaluations; they were having everything crammed into less than twelve hours. Her advantage –and Leonard's- was that they already had degrees, she blew through her test in a few hours and he wasn't too far behind her. The trip to medical was uneventful thanks to half her medical record being classified. She was checked out and then sent to the shrink. When all was said and done, she ended up standing with Leonard in the Quartermaster's office; which was more like a warehouse. They were issued uniforms, PADDs, communication units, and dorm rooms.

"Can I room with you, doc? I know they'll probably let you have a solo but if they stick me in a room with one of these squeaky clean kids, I _will_ hurt somebody. I'm neat, I can cook and I'll stay out of your way," Jamie looked at him and practically begged.

Leonard gave her a sideways look, as the quartermaster was assigning him a room, "I can go in a double, the kid will room with me." He gestured towards Jamie.

Whatever the guy was gonna say was cut off by Pike, "Put them together in Hernandez Hall." Jamie didn't even see him show up, they were going to have a conversation about all this eventually.

Pike handed her a credit chit, "You two, get some civvies and anything else you might need. And no, kid, you can't pay me back."


	2. Are You Sleeping with Him?

"Are you sleeping with him?" the southerner asked her. 

Jamie almost fell over laughing at her new roommate as he asked about Pike. They had walked to Hernandez Hall and found themselves in the building used for low-ranking officers, married cadets and medical cadets. Their 'dorm' was a furnished, two-bedroom apartment with separate rooms on either side of a small kitchen and living area; miles beyond the couch she spent the last week sleeping on.

"No, guess he feels like I'm his responsibility or something. Long story." She didn't say anymore on the subject and Bones didn't push. Bones, she liked that one, it fit him.

They got themselves settled in relative silence, mentally preparing for their classes the next day. Jamie had tested out of a lot of stuff –yay for master degrees- so she didn't have to take some of the basic classes, Bones on the other hand, got to skip the basic medical stuff. They agreed to help each other out. She'd teach him engineering and he'd teach her what he could about basic medical. They grabbed dinner and even made a quick trip to a market off campus for food –mainly coffee- and toiletries before calling it a night.

"Thanks for letting me room with you," she said to him before she went to her room and promptly fell asleep.

The next morning, she walked into the kitchen to find her roommate, "Look who cleans up nice."

She just rolled her eyes at him and moved to make a cup of coffee, "Look who's talking, Bones."

He looked at her, "Bones?"

"Yep, came up with it last night. You said they were the only things the ex-wife left you with," she told him. He chuckled at her, told her not to call him that and glanced at chronometer.

"We better go, if we're gonna make it to class. Don't want to be late to the first class of the first day," the doctor told her in that sexy ass accent.

Twenty minutes later they found themselves sitting next to each other in orientation; all cadets had to attend and it bled right into the 'Intro to Federation History' course. As a command cadet, Jamie would have to take the next three classes in the series. She was a little surprised to see Pike as their instructor. She had found out that morning that he was also going to be her advisor.

"Maybe he wants to sleep with you," Bones whispered.

Jamie shook her head, "I highly doubt that, Bonesy."

"Don't call me that."

She rolled her eyes and listened to Pike welcome the room to Starfleet Academy, he began with a question to the class.

"What is Starfleet?" the captain asked the room full of cadets.

It should have been simple but the other cadets -kids- in the room were giving him the answers that you would find in recruitment materials.

Bones whispered in her ear, "Where my ex-wife wouldn't look for me."

Jamie laughed quietly and drew Pike's attention, "Miss Kirk, what do you think?"

She shrugged as the whole class looked at her, "Well, the officer who recruited me said something about 'humanitarian and peace-keeping armada.' I could also go with the whole 'boldly go where no one has gone before' thing, too. I guess I'm supposed to say something like, 'the function of Starfleet is to explore unknown territory on the behalf of the Federation government. It's job is to defend the Federation and its allies from threats, as well as to further Federation policies and interests throughout interstellar space. Starfleet can also initiate first contact with newly-discovered worlds and to engage in diplomatic negotiations on the behalf of the Federation.' That's just the function, though. To me, Starfleet is an idea. A place where people from all over the galaxy could work together to explore the vastness of space. And no matter what world we come from, we are all responsible to and for each other, sir."

Pike smiled and nodded, "Nicely put, Miss Kirk; and very accurate." Pike moved to a full explanation of what Starfleet really is and what it means to be an officer; not the worst class Jamie's ever been in.

* * *

It was a good day, tiring but still good. Jamie was sitting on the couch reading some chapters for a class when Bones got back. He had classes in the morning and then a six-hour shift at the hospital after lunch. He sat down at the other end of the couch, "Why the fuck did I decide to join Starfleet?"

She just looked at him, "How the hell should I know? We've known each other for like a day."

He glared at her, "And yet, you gave me a nickname. I think I might give you one."

Jamie smirked, "as long as it's not ridiculous, go for it." He nodded and moved into the kitchen, Jamie made dinner about an hour before he got to their apartment, all he had to do was heat it up.

"If I ask you a question, will you answer it?"

She looked at him and shrugged, "I guess it depends on the question."

He sat in his original spot, "What's the deal with you, Pike and this stuff about him being responsible for you?" Jamie thought for a minute, they were going to be roommates for a while, she might as well tell him.

"I can't give you details but something bad happened to me when I was younger, Pike saved my life. You don't know who my dad is, so I won't tell you for now but he died a long time ago. I guess Pike decided to keep an eye on me, I had no idea until he showed up in Riverside."

Even though she stayed under the radar for the last nine years, he kept track of what she was doing. Jamie got the chance to talk with Pike around lunch, turns out that she was the only cadet he was the advisor for, he wasn't supposed to have any but requested her. She had no idea why he added something else to his workload, the man was teaching a class four times a day and keeping track of a ship in construction.

By the time Jamie got to Tarsus at eleven, she was working on her first bachelor's degree at Iowa State University. Most people thought she was a dumb blonde; so she let them but the truth was, she loved learning new things. She didn't have to go to school with the other kids on the colony and found herself working on equipment or computers with her uncle most of the time. She swore to herself that she would go to school like she promised her aunt, uncle and Hoshi. Jamie got her master's in engineering from the Academy of Engineers on Vulcan and her master's in computer programming from University of Bologna in Italy. She was still trying to decide if she was going to get her doctorate degree, Pike thought she could do it, maybe she will.

"I still think he wants to sleep with you," Bones muttered. Jamie just laughed.


	3. Shut ya trap 'n pack, Jim

"Shut ya trap 'n pack, Jim," Bones told her.

She just looked at him, "I don't need your pity."

He folded his arms over his chest and looked at her, "Is that what this is, darlin'? I thought I was asking my friend to come home with me for Christmas."

The first four months at the academy were relatively good. The pair had became pretty good friends; he made sure that she took care of herself and she made sure he relaxed every once in a while. They shared meals, studied together and watched out for each other. She dragged him to a party on Halloween, and promptly hooked him up with one of the girls on the engineering track. Jamie couldn't help but smirk the next morning when the pair stumbled into the kitchen for coffee. She laughed at him when he tried to explain, " _Not a big deal, Bones. You looked like you needed to get laid anyway_."

They spent Thanksgiving in San Francisco hanging out, Jamie had some practical applications to do during the break and Bones decided not to leave her alone. When she wasn't in class, they spent time watching movies and telling stories. On Thanksgiving Day, they both cooked, then shared a bottle of bourbon and spilled some of their secrets, Jamie learned about Bones' daughter and Jamie told Bones about her family. She didn't tell him about Tarsus –she wasn't that drunk- but she knew she would have to eventually since he was her doctor and the gap in her medical was getting to him, " _it's 2255 for fuck's sake. We shouldn't have information missin' like that_."

"You aren't staying here by yourself for Christmas. I won't let ya and mama would kill me if I did. She wants to meet ya, anyway. Ain't gonna disappoint my mama are ya Jim?" he asked her.

Mrs. Eleanora Holbrook McCoy was a sweet woman who Jamie got to talk with a few times when Bones comm'ed home. If it had been anybody else, Jamie wouldn't have cared but Mama Ella –as she was instructed to call Bones' mother- wasn't just anybody and if she wanted Jamie there than she would show up. The look on her face must have given her away, because Bones smiled.

"Mama has that affect on people."

* * *

It was a good thing that Jamie went him, his knuckles were white the whole flight to Atlanta. She had been working on getting him more comfortable flying but he was still scared most of the time. She held his hand and talked to him just like that first day.

"Leo!" They landed and were in the terminal when a guy approached them.

Bones hugged the man and turned to Jamie, "Jim, this is my brother-in-law, Fred." She went to shake his hand and was pulled into a hug; she glanced at Bones who just chuckled.

"Welcome to Georgia, Jim. Come on, Mama Ella is waiting for us and it'll take us 'bout 45 minutes ta get there,"Fred told her. They walked to his car and Fred opened the door for her.

"You never hold the door for me, Bonesy," Jim teased.

He snorted, "Start acting like a lady and I will."

* * *

"Daddy!"

They made it to Bones' childhood home in Ellijay and before they were even out of the car, Jamie spotted a little brown and purple blur running to meet them, she glanced to the backseat and found a smile on Bones' face that she'd never seen before. The little girl jumped into her friend's arms the second he was out of the car. Joanna looked over Bones' shoulder at Jamie, who waved.

"Who's that, daddy?" the girl asked.

Bones turned, "That's my friend from school, wanna meet her?" Bones sat the girl –who is a cuter version of her dad- on her feet.

She walked up to Jamie, "Hi, I'm Joanna Eleanora McCoy."

Jamie knelt to the girl's level, "Hi, Joanna. I'm Jamie Teresa Kirk. It's very nice to meet you, your dad talks about you a lot." Joanna's face lit up, she looked at her dad.

Bones nodded, "I do." Bones talked about Joanna all the time now that Jamie knew. His face softened every time, it looked good on him.

Joanna took Jamie's hand and pulled her to the house where Bones' older sister, Donna, was standing at the door. The woman hugged her brother before giving Jamie a once over. The younger woman must have passed inspection because Donna hugged her too and welcomed her to their parent's house. The Holbrook Home was a large house that sat on an apple orchard, it had been in Mama Ella's family for generations. Jamie looked around while they went in search of Bones' parents; there were pictures all over the place and she picked out Bones right away.

"That's Leonard before he graduated from medical school." David Andrew McCoy entered the room from behind her, at 72 the man didn't look a day over fifty. She smiled and introduced herself to her friend's father.

The elder McCoy smiled, "Ella told me that Leo was bringing home a friend but I didn't expect for Jim to be a beautiful girl." Before she could reply, Bones and his mother walked into the room.

"Well look at you, as pretty as a magnolia in May," Mama Ella said to her. The woman pulled Jamie into a hug –how the hell was her grumpy friend from a hugging family- and welcomed her.

* * *

They talked and got settled as more of the family showed up, eventually, Jamie found herself sitting on the porch.

"I know you're from Iowa and all but you're gonna catch your death out here. You alright?" Bones asked. Jamie nodded at her friend who sat down next to her and put arm over her shoulder. The temperature had dropped as the sun went down and it was a little chilly.

She glanced at him, "I'm not cold, I just needed some air. I don't have enough family for gatherings like this. It's a bit much."

Jackson, David's younger brother, got to the house about an hour after they did. With him was his son, Thomas and his daughter, Ellie; both were around the same age as Jamie. David and Jackson's father, Thomas Jackson –or TJ- was at the house when Jamie and Bones arrived, Mama Ella's sisters were there as well. The two younger Holbrook sisters swooped in on Jamie the second she was introduced.

Everyone was going to stay at the house and after some fast-talking, Mama Ella agreed to letting Jamie and Bones share his old room but she warned them that there was to be " _no funny business_." They had both just chuckled at her, " _We're friends, mama but we ain't that friendly_." Jamie told Bones that he didn't have to sit outside with her but he stayed anyway.


	4. Get Your Lips off my Cousin

"Get your lips off my cousin," Bones said with a nudge. Jamie got stuck under the mistletoe with Thomas, she tried to make it a quick kiss but he just about swallowed her face. Thomas let her go at Bones' voice, winked and left the room. She glared at her best friend, she had made a motion for help, but he left her hanging.

"That was not my idea, Bones. You could've rescued me or something." He looked at her like she'd lost her mind. Jamie shook her head and looked at him, "Bones, unless you want to kiss me, we better move." She was still in the same spot that she got caught with Thomas was in, meaning that there was mistletoe above their heads. The pair tried to get away but Bones' Aunt Josephine told them not to break tradition. Bones rolled his eyes but leaned in and kissed her anyway. His lips were soft and warm and the kiss was too short if you asked Jamie.

Christmas Day had rolled around; it was the third day that they'd been there. Jamie was surprised that she had gifts under the tree when they opened them that morning; if she had to guess, it was Mama Ella's doing. Jamie got to hang out with Joanna and Ellie, heard stories about Bones as a kid, helped bring in some apples and she learned the recipe for the Holbrook blackberry-apple pie. Bones told her just how lucky she was to get it, " _mama wouldn't even give that recipe to Jocelyn_." Bones' ex-wife had stopped by with her new husband around noon to spend part of the day with Joanna; Jocelyn and Clay Treadway walked in like they owned the place. Jocelyn was particularly bitchy towards her and Clay was an ass; simply put, they were made for each other.

"So, how'd you meet Leonard? You aren't one of his nurses are you?"

Jamie looked at Jocelyn as Bones answered for her, "She's Starfleet and no, she's not a nurse."

The other woman flipped her hair, "Oh, bet your parents were thrilled about that. 'Hey, mom and dad, I'm gonna go gallivanting around the galaxy.' Couldn't think of anything better to do with yourself, or did all the boys refuse to marry you?"

Jamie smiled, "My parents were both Starfleet officers who died in service to the Federation. If they were here, they'd be proud. Don't let the pretty face and blonde hair fool you, I have two master's degrees. I could do just about anything I want, Starfleet offered the best challenge." Mama Ella laughed from somewhere behind her, the look on Jocelyn's face was priceless.

When Jocelyn recovered, she smirked, "You know, he'll never love you as much as he loves his work." Jamie had figured out that Jocelyn thought she and Bones were a couple, neither of them bothered to correct her.

Jamie chuckled, "No, he didn't love _you_ as much as he loves his work. I'm not you." Whatever Jocelyn was expecting, that wasn't it. She was about to say something before Jamie cut her off and spoke again. "You know, you have no right to be in his business. You cheated on him, you left him and you divorced him. Just because you're too dumb to realize what an amazing man you had, doesn't mean I am. Unlike you, I don't _need_ a man to feel valued, I already know how amazing I am, I'm just waiting for the rest of the universe to figure it out."

Bones glanced at Jamie, then looked at his ex-wife and burst into laughter. "When I told you to leave her alone, Jocelyn, I wasn't protecting her. I was trying to stop you from embarrassing yourself." A few minutes later, the Treadway's found a reason to leave, Jamie noticed that they didn't take Joanna with them.

"She lives with us." Donna said from next to her, "Clay doesn't like children so her mother just gave her to my brother. Leo would take her to San Fran but he knew that he'd be busy and he didn't want to separate her from me, mama and papa. I offered to let her stay with me, I work from home so I'm there when she's not in school." Jamie could understand where Bones was coming from but she didn't get Jocelyn one bit, maybe that was a good thing.

Joanna joined them on the steps, "Are you leaving too miss Jamie?"

The blonde shook her head, "Nope, me and your dad get to stay for a few more days." The six-year-old smiled, took Jamie's hand and pulled her into the house.

* * *

That night, Jamie was sitting on his bed in her pajamas reading her messages when Bones came into his room, she looked up and smiled at him. He quickly changed his clothes, sat down next to her and looked at her for a few minutes. Before she could ask him why he was staring at her, he spoke.

"Why didn't you correct Jocelyn about us?" he asked. Jamie looked at him, she hadn't really thought about it to be honest.

"Like it would've mattered to her if I did. From what you told me; she always looks for a reason to argue and I was an easy target. It's not like I lied or anything, you are an amazing person and I'm lucky just to know you. Love your work all you want, it's part of who you are."

Bones nodded and kissed her cheek, "Thanks. You ain't so bad yourself, darlin'. Now, its bedtime." Jamie smiled as they turned off the light and got settled on their own sides of the bed.

"You know, it's not _all_ your fault. It takes two people to make a relationship work," she told him.

His eyes sought her out in the dark, "I know. I wish it would've ended differently though." Jamie smiled to herself; Bones really was a nice guy. Jamie had figured out that the more he grumbled at her about something, the more worried he was.

"Look at the bright side, Len. Now you got me."

He pulled her into his arms and chuckled, "I guess I do."


	5. Come on, We're Playing Hooky

"Come on, we're playing hooky." Jamie rolled her eyes and looked at her friend. January 4th was her least favorite day of the year, most people would be excited about their birthday; she would be too if it didn't also double as the day her father died.

"Go to class, Bones. I'll be fine."

He shook his head and walked to her dresser, "No can do, Jimmy. Get up and get dressed. We gotta go."

Jamie raised an eyebrow but did as he asked. After a quick shower, she put on her clothes and walked into the living area to find Bones and Pike talking to each other.

"Do I even wanna know?" she asked the two men. The look on Bones' face told her that she probably didn't.

"The press knows that you're attending the Academy and keeping them off campus is not as easy as it should be, some of your classmates are already in trouble for talking to them. I'm sending you to my cabin in Mojave. I didn't want to send you by yourself, so McCoy is going with. It's not like anyone would be surprised by that, you two usually go everywhere together. You've both been excused from class and I gave McCoy your assignments," Pike told her.

Jamie nodded, "How we getting there?"

The captain smirked, "Transporter. You can thank Archer." Bones rolled his eyes, he hated the transporter with a passion. His exact words were, " _I joined up to practice medicine, not to have my atoms scattered back and forth across space by that damn gadget."_

"Why do you care?" Bones asked. Judging by the look on his face, he didn't mean to say it out loud.

Pike looked at him and chuckled, "The short version is that someone has to. She'll fill you in." Pike told her weeks ago to tell McCoy, " _He's your friend and he's your doctor, you should tell him. You can't keep it all buried, it'll eat you alive_." She sent a glare at the older man, she wanted to talk to Bones but not like this and not today. After a quick 'see ya later,' Pike opened his comm. unit and told the person on the other end to beam them out. One second they're standing in their apartment and the next they were in Pike's cabin.

Jamie had been here before when she was thirteen, there was nowhere for her to go when they got back to Earth from Tarsus Four. She told Bones where everything was as she took off her jacket and sat down. "How do you know your way around Pike's cabin?" Jamie looked at her friend for a second, no time like the present to talk about the past.

She shrugged, "I've been here before." Jamie gestured at the chair across from her, "I guess I have to tell you the whole story for any of it to make sense." He didn't say anything, he just sat down and nodded for her to continue. "Everyone knows about my dad so I won't bore you with that part. My mother went back to the fleet when I was little, two years old, I think. My brother, Sam, and I stayed with Grandpa Jim until I was six. That's when mom came home from one of her assignments married to this guy who worked at the Riverside Fleet Yards, Frank. He wasn't a bad guy, just strict and unsure of what to do with two kids who weren't his. Mom kinda left us with him and split again, my grandpa died a few months later. Sam and Frank had this big blow out over my dad's car when I was eleven, Frank wanted to sell it, but technically, Sam and I owned it. Sam was done after that and he ran away. I drove the car into the quarry later that day but that's a different story. Anyway, I had an easier time with Frank then Sam did, probably because he knew our father and all I knew were stories. Sam is alive, the last I checked but I have no idea where." Jamie could remember it all like it was yesterday, she used to be mad at Sam for leaving, but as she got older, she realized that he was only doing what he had to do for himself and she couldn't hold that against him.

"Frank got hurt at work after that and couldn't take care of himself, no way in hell he could take care of me, so my aunt and uncle took me to live with them off-planet. My mom died a few months after I got to their house. I still remember the look on Aunt Marie's face when she told me." She stopped for a moment, "I was in college when I moved so I didn't go to school with the other kids, I worked with my uncle, fixing stuff and learning computer programming. One day I was walking home and ran into this older women; she was speaking the most beautiful language, so I asked if she could teach me. Her name was Hoshi Sato." Jamie stopped and let it sink in; Tarsus Four was covered in Fed History and Hoshi's death resisting Kodos was well known.

Realization dawned on Bones' face after a few minutes, "You were on Tarsus Four?"

She nodded, "Uncle Jeff and Aunt Marie were part of the group that founded the colony. I was there when the shit hit the fan."

"Do you know who J.T. is?" Bones asked.

Jamie nodded, according to the history books, J.T. was a young teenager who fought Kodos, ended up saving the colony and, specifically, saved a group of children hidden in the caves outside the main colony.

"You're J.T." Bones said with a sigh. He didn't phrase it as a question, it really didn't need to be one.

She nodded again, "After Starfleet showed up, it was decided that my involvement would be best kept classified. Didn't want to tell the Federation why the Kelvin Baby was at the Tarsus Four Massacre. Only a handful of the people on the colony knew who I was since I used my mother's maiden name, family knew, a few friends and Hoshi. I'll skip the details, but we spent three months in hell before Starfleet showed up. Pike was on the away team that found us kids; it took me a minute to recognize him as the guy who interviewed to my mother for his dissertation on the Kelvin. When we got back to earth, Pike brought me here since I didn't have anywhere else to go; he was legally my guardian for a while. Since my mom died, Frank didn't have any rights to me. He got remarried right before everything went down and I didn't want to mess up his life. I talk to him sometimes but it's weird."

Jamie felt like she would cry, other than Pike, she never told anyone about Tarsus. She had the occasional friend in college but no one she trusted enough to spill her guts to. She didn't realize that Bones had moved to sit next to her until he was pulling her into his arms, Jamie rested her head against his chest. She couldn't help the laugh that escaped when Bones chuckled and said, "I guess that solves the mystery of your missin' medical records."


	6. I Can't Believe You Talked Me into This

"I can't believe you talked me into this," he grumbled.

Jamie just chuckled at Bones as they made their way down Chestnut Street with her Tellarite buddy, Glorak. The trio was heading to the new holo-karaoke bar called The Delta Quadrant; Cadets Mitchell, Kelso, Gaila and Uhura were already there.

"Come on Bones, one of us has to do something fun on their birthday. Since nothing can make mine not suck, fun times must be had on yours. Besides I like making Uhura uneasy," she told him.

Bones' birthday was only a few weeks after Jamie's on January 20th; since her birthday was universally a bad day, she decided to unofficially adopt his. He rolled his eyes and grumbled something that she couldn't understand.

"Good God man!" Jamie laughed as Bones almost got knocked over by a small woman carrying a very large, very live lobster.

"Oh, we should have sea food for dinner tomorrow," Jamie suggested knowing full well what his answer would be.

Glorak looked at her, "your ocean produces some odd creatures."

"Don't get him started, Bones hates the ocean more than he hates space," Jamie warned Glorak.

The Tellarite looked at her best friend in surprise, "You don't like space?"

Jamie chuckled, "His exact words were 'Space is disease and danger, wrapped in darkness and silence.' I should get a tattoo that says that."

"If you hate space, why would you join Starfleet?" Glorak asked.

Bones rolled his eyes, "For the people."

Jamie couldn't help but laugh, "You are _not_ a people person, doc." Bones smirked but didn't respond. They got the bar and quickly located their friends, Gary was singing a song, Kelso was talking to one of their classmates named Braxim and the girls were at the table next them.

"Standard rules of engagement," Glorak said from next to her.

Jamie nodded, "Yep, Mister Glorak. Rendezvous here at 2145." They all agreed and went in different directions; Bones to the bar, Glorak to some of his other friends and Jamie to Gaila and Uhura. "Hello, Gaila. And girl who won't tell me her first name."

Gaila sent Jamie a huge smile while Uhura rolled her eyes, "Kirk."

To everyone else, Jamie and Uhura looked like they hated each other; the truth was that they just liked to keep each other on their toes. The two women were at the top of the class and as much as the linguist wanted to believe that Jamie was only there on her good looks and last name, her grade point average and involvement in the xenolinguistics club silenced the budding communications officer. Jamie chatted with them before an arm dropped over her shoulder.

"What's cooking, good looking?" Gary Mitchell was in the class of '57, but he hung out with their group sometimes, she didn't hold it against him, the guy was a damn good kisser.

"Hey, Mitch," she said with a smile. Jamie and Gary met in a class, Bones didn't like him but she didn't like all the girls he brought home so they were even. Jamie and Gary talked for a while before Jamie noticed the look on Uhura's face. She moved to speak but before she could say anything, Gaila started talking and Jamie couldn't make out any of it. "How drunk _is_ she?" Jamie asked Uhura.

"Very. She had a bad day. Think you can help me get her back to campus?"

Jamie nodded and stopped the cocktail server from giving Gaila another drink; she slid it to Braxim. The only Xanno cadet at the Academy offered to help take the Orion cadet back to her dorm. Jamie nodded "Lemme grab Bones and Glorak." The Tellarite was quick to accompany her, Bones put up a little resistance.

"In the middle of somethin' Jim," Bones said, his accent on full display for the two girls at the bar.

The doctor always gave off the impression that he didn't like people but when he wanted to, he could turn on the charm. At the moment, he was chatting up a cute blonde and her friend. He told Jamie that she didn't need his help when she explained what was going on, so she appealed to his caretaker side.

"Bones, she might need a doctor and Uhura actually asked for my help," Jamie pleaded.

He apologized to the girls for his " _friend who can't function without him_ " and went with Jamie to meet the others near the bathroom. Kelso, Braxim and Glorak were talking to each other and Gary was leaning against the wall.

"She didn't come out here did she?" They all looked up at Uhura and answered in the negative; Jamie followed Uhura into the bathroom to find that the window was open. When the girls returned, it was like the whole group went into tactical mode. They all left the bar.

"How far can she go?" Glorak asked.

Jamie, Bones, Uhura and Gary all looked at each other, " _Far_!" The group split up; Bones, Kelso and Uhura went one way, Gary and Glorak went in another and Jamie and Braxim in a third direction.

"I like nights like this," Braxim said to her, the night was foggy yet beautiful. Braxim was an imposing figure, as were the rest of his race, he was also a fun guy who liked being around people; Jamie liked his attitude towards the universe. She smiled at him and kept walking. They took turns going into the businesses that they passed.

"Your turn, Brax. I'm going to keep looking." Braxim nodded.

"Don't get too far ahead of me, Kirk," he told her as he ducked into a shop to see if the Orion went inside. Jamie moved along, soon she heard Gaila singing.

"Hey, Gaila," Jamie called as she followed the sound into an alley behind some classic-style houses. The singing suddenly stopped, Jamie heard Gaila gasping and a metallic voice speaking. She got closer and could see her friend and a big shadowy figure; it had Gaila by the throat. "Hey! Hey you!" She ran up to them shouting in -what Bones calls- her 'command voice.' She could hear Gaila groan; Jamie made a move to kick the creature, even though she was sure her shot would connect, she hit air. The next thing she knew, it had a hand wrapped around her neck. Jamie couldn't move or breathe, she vaguely remembers Braxim showing up before she passed out.


	7. Don't Be Such an Infant

"Don't be such an infant," Bones told her as he injected a hypo into her neck.

Jamie squirmed in the bio-bed, she really didn't like hospitals and she really didn't like doctors, present company excluded. "I'm fine, Bones."

He looked at her, "Oh, really? When did you get a medical degree? The last time I checked, I'm the doctor and you're the idiot who tried to fight some seven foot creature alone in the dark. I swear you are the dumbest genius I've ever met." Jamie smirked; she knew he wasn't mad at her, just worried.

"He was hurting Gaila, what else was I supposed to do?" she asked. "How is she?"

He glared at her, "No permanent damage, we're pretty sure that you saved her life. She's in the room next door, woke up 'bout an hour ago. She's worried about you, they all are." Bones filled her in on what happened after she lost consciousness. Braxim had called the 911 and scared the guy off, then he called the others. When they got there, Braxim was kneeling between Jamie and Gaila, making sure they were both still breathing. San Francisco police talked to the Xannon but they were handing the investigation over to Starfleet, they were going to want to talk to both cadets.

"Don't do that to me again, Jim." Jamie looked at him, right now, he wasn't the cantankerous southerner that she knew, he looked like he was terrified.

"Hey, look at me," his hazel eyes met her blue, "It's not the first time someone tried to choke me. I'm fine, Bones." She reached over, took his hand and gently tugged until he stepped closer to the bed, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her forehead on his chest, "I'm ok, I promise. Sorry about your birthday."

"I'll live." Eventually, he wrapped his arms around her and let out a breath, "You scared the shit outta me, darlin'."

She looked up at him, "Wasn't my intent, trust me. I heard him hurting Gaila and I just reacted. Didn't know you cared so much."

Bones nodded, then he stopped and looked at her neck, "What is that?" She was about to ask when he grabbed a swab and swiped it over a small area above her collarbone; it came away black. Bones put it in a samples container and ran the tricorder over her again. "It's inconclusive. I have no idea why. I should probably scan Gaila again too." Jamie nodded; Bones was unstoppable when he went into his doctor mode. He kissed her forehead, "I'll be back. Get some sleep." She nodded and did as her doctor ordered.

* * *

Jamie woke up a few hours later to find Bones sleeping in the chair next to her bed, she laid there and watched the rise and fall of his chest and smiled at the way his features relaxed when he slept; he looked years younger. "You know it's creepy to watch someone sleep, right?"

Her eyes flickered to his, "I should've taken a holo. Prove to your mama that you actually sleep."

Bones smiled, "She'd love that. How you feelin'?"

"I'm fine. Can't go home, can I?" she asked even though she knew he's say no.

Bones shook his head, "We're running tests on that stuff I found on your neck, it was on Gaila too." Whatever it was, they got it from the thing that tried to choke them. Jamie couldn't remember what it was, she couldn't remember much of anything; apparently neither could Gaila. "They're going to put you in the same room in a few hours." Jamie nodded in understanding; whatever was going on it was better to have them together, at least they won't be alone all day.

* * *

"He's so hot. You really haven't slept with him?" Gaila asked after they got the two women settled in a double room and Bones checked on them.

She looked at the Orion, "No, I haven't."

Gaila raised an eyebrow at her, "But Jamie... Why not?"

Jamie thought about it, "The easy answer is that he doesn't see me that way. The more difficult answer is that he deserves so much better than me and I don't want to be in the way when he finds it."

Jamie wasn't expecting her green friend to laugh, "He loves you. And if I had to guess, I think he might feel like he's the one who isn't good enough for you." Jamie couldn't help but laugh, Bones was one of the best people she knew; hell, he's a way better person than she ever was.

Jamie was going to reply to Gaila but there was a knock on the door. They looked up to find Mitchell, Kelso, Glorak, Braxim and Uhura. Their friends sat with them joking around and updating them on the world outside the hospital. Braxim kept apologizing, "Brax, stop. It's not your fault. I knew what I was doing when I tried to help Gaila and I knew you weren't far behind me. Stop blaming yourself, you're the one who saved our asses." He looked around the room and was met with smiles and nods.

Kelso spoke up, "If it makes you feel better, we could just blame Mitch, it's more fun that way." Everyone but Gary laughed at that.

Eventually, the nurse kicked them out. The guys all said their goodbyes, Kelso gave Jamie a hug and Gary gave her a quick kiss before they left the room, promising to return if they aren't out of the hospital soon. Uhura stayed for another few minutes, on her way out, she turned and looked at Jamie.

"Thanks for… you know," the linguist said to her.

Jamie nodded and smiled, "Anytime."

* * *

She didn't remember falling asleep but it was Bones that woke her and Gaila up, they were both having nightmares that turned out to be eerily similar; dark, foggy, alone and something getting into their eyes and lungs, making it hard to see and breathe. Bones checked them both out and looked at each of their necks, another doctor ran into the room, "It's gone, isn't it?"

Jamie and Gaila looked at each other as Bones nodded, "How'd you know?" The other doctor explained that the samples they took were trying to get out of the quantum containment chamber.

"You want to fill us in docs?" Jamie asked. Bones explained that the substance he found was out of their systems, completely gone.

Gaila looked at him, "Where did it go?"

Both doctors shrugged and the doctor they didn't know sighed, "Home, maybe."

* * *

The next morning Uhura stopped by with news that she was helping with the investigation, the creature said something to Braxim and it was recorded. Lieutenant Commander Spock recommended her to the Commandant of Cadets as the best choice to figure out what it was. Gaila teased her the whole time, "I think he likes you, and you like him."

Uhura rolled her eyes, "He doesn't like me, he's Vulcan."

Jamie laughed, "Half, his mom is human." They both looked at her so she continued, "Went to school on Vulcan, I met his mom, Lady Amanda. She's nice. Spock's dad is the Ambassador to Earth; apparently, the lieutenant commander takes after him. I never met him, but maybe he does like you, I mean you're one of the smartest people I know and Vulcans value intellect." Gaila smirked.

Uhura blushed and stood up, "I gotta go but I'll be back later." She gave them both a hug and then left the room.

Bones entered as she left, "Making people uncomfortable again ladies?"

"Just Ny... she'll get over it," Gaila told him.


	8. Well, Fuck Me

"Well, fuck me," Bones groaned. The look on his face was priceless when she and Gaila both mumbled, 'When and where?' at the same time. They looked at each other before Jamie chuckled.

"What happened?" she asked. 

He shook his head at them before clearing his throat, "Some cadets with smoke inhalation were brought in, but they have that black chalky substance on them too."

He paused for a second, "One of them is Uhura." The woman watched him leave and then called for the nurse; there was no way in hell they were staying in this room while all their friends were in the waiting area, the older woman agreed to let them go sit with the guys as long as they took it easy.

"You guys know anything yet?" Gaila asked as they walked arm-in-arm into the waiting room, Gary, Kelso, Braxim and Glorak were there, so were Lieutenant Commander Spock and Doctor Telemark, one of the science department professors. Jamie had his astrophysics class, he was a good teacher and his love for science was captivating; he thought she was impulsive and nepotistic but she didn't hold it against him.

The group sat in the room for a few hours when Doctor Griffin, the chief medical officer of the Medical College, and Bones walked into the room.

"How are they, sir?" Jamie asked the doctor, Griffin told them that the three cadets seemed fine and they'll be keeping an eye on them. Uhura got the worst of it but she's a fighter.

"Her blood is outta wack but we're working on it. She's on a ventilator for now, but it looks promising. Of course, McCoy thinks the residue on her is still active," Griffin told them.

Spock raised an eyebrow, "Active?"

Bones nodded, "Yes sir. The samples I took from Cadets Kirk and Gaila yesterday are still active in the lab. If this is the same substance, and I think it is, there's no telling what it'll do."

Jamie looked at him, "You really think it's the same stuff that you found on us from the attack?"

He nodded again, "Looks that way, Jim."

Spock looked at her and Gaila, "Curious."

The Orion chuckled, "That's not even the half of it, sir."

It was a scary thought that the 'smoke' was somehow sentient but it was the only thing that made any sense. Uhura and the other cadets had no thermal damage and there was no fire in the lab where they were working. Jamie only remembered a little, but thinking about it she couldn't come up with a description of the figure other than it was big and black. What if the substance was a being?

Bones told Jamie and Gaila to head back to their room with a promise that he'd stop by later, Gary and Braxim walked back with them. "Once you lovely ladies are all out of the hospital, drinks are on me," Gary said to them.

Gaila batted her eyelashes and took his arm, "Is that so, Mister Mitchell?"

Gary turned on the charm and kept flirting with her, Jamie and Braxim just looked at each other in amusement as the pair had a very interesting conversation. Braxim hugged both women goodbye while Gary gave Jamie a kiss and then had a mini make-out session with Gaila; Braxim had to practically drag him out of the room.

"He is delicious. Please tell me you went there," Gaila said when they were alone.

Jamie chuckled, "A few times. That man has a very talented tongue." Gaila giggled, the girl was practically giddy; he asked her out. She wasn't shocked, Gaila and Gary were similar people; Attractive, smart and very sexual.

"Do I even want to know who you're talking about?" Bones asked as he walked into the room.

The girls looked at each other and said, "Gary." Bones rolled his eyes.

Gaila looked at him, "What was that look for Leonard? You don't like Gary?"

He shrugged, "I like him just fine, i just…"

Gaila smirked, "Don't like him for Jamie. I get it." Bones didn't say anything.

Jamie just looked at him, "Really?"

Bones looked at her, "Go to bed. You get released on the world tomorrow. God help us all." Jamie looked at Gaila who winked at her. "I'm gonna go check on Uhura and the others, I'll be back to check on you two in a little while." Her very tired best friend left the room.

"Told you he wanted you," the Orion told her. Jamie tried to ignore her but Jamie had to wonder if Gaila was right, even a little. They were Jim and Bones, she thought up crazy shit and he patched her up when it was all over, they would never work as a couple. Jamie said as much to Gaila who laughed, "Define a couple. Aside from sex, you two act like one. If both of your pheromones are anything to go by, you should just have sex with him, you both want to."

Jamie pulled the cover over her head and groaned, "Go to sleep Gaila."

* * *

The next day, Jamie was sitting in the lab with Bones. He punched up a holo-vid of an experiment they ran on the substance, "Watch this, Jim."

She looked at the screen, they split the samples up and then introduced an amoeba into the chamber. Jamie watched as the large intruder tried to engulf the substance, then they turned on it, attached to every bit of it and destroyed it.

"These things were in me? Wow," Jamie was stunned.

"Keep watching, darlin'," he said from behind her. She never took her eyes off the screen; the substance had replicated the amoeba in a perfect copy.

"I'm so glad that I'm not squeamish."

Bones nodded, "I comm'ed a friend to come take a look, I still haven't figured out what they are." A few minutes later, there was a knock on the lab door. Bones want to open it and returned with a man that Jamie vaguely recognized. "Doctor Parag Chandar, I'd like you to meet Jamie Kirk," Bones introduced her. She shook the man's hand as she connected where she knew him from. She couldn't believe that this was the man in charge of one of the best nanotechnology labs in Federation space, he was way too young.

"Jamie Kirk in the flesh, it's nice to finally meet you. Wow, he said you were beautiful," Chandar said. 

Jamie glanced at Bones, "He did, did he? What else did the good doctor say about me?"

"That you were also brilliant and crazy," Chandar told her.

Jamie laughed, "True on both accounts but I'm more brilliant than crazy."

With that, the trio got to work, Doctor Chandar pulled a data chip from his pocket and plugged it in. A bunch of windows popped up and he selected one. It had a 3D image of a single particle, "Beautiful isn't it?"

Jamie tilted her head, "Only because it isn't on my body anymore." They both laughed at her, then Bones spoke.

"What is it?" he asked in amazement.

"Oh God," Jamie whispered. Chandar smiled at her and nodded, she figured it out. "Nanites? Any idea on who or why?" she asked him.

Chandar shook his head, "Not a clue, we're working on it." That just beat all, nanites were simply nanorobots or nanobots, molecule sided pieces of equipment. Someone had to build them and someone had to unleash them on San Francisco. They appeared to communicate with each other and they were designed to lock into the nanite next to it. Jamie was fascinated, it wasn't everyday you got to see something so small and yet so powerful.

"We better get this info to the investigators," she told the two doctors.


	9. This is a Dumb Idea

"This is a dumb idea," Bones said to her while they were in the elevator heading up to meet the lunatic. Jamie knew this plan sucked but they were too far in it to turn around now. With Uhura's help, they had figured out that the swarm and the creator was from the delta quadrant. It spoke a mix of Romulan phrases and Xanno, which explained why it attacked Jamie and Gaila but not Braxim; it had studied the Xannon race before. It was conducting 'bad science,' as Bones phrased it. They learned that another Orion girl was attacked and killed in the days since Jamie and Gaila were released from the hospital.

Right after she was released, Uhura and a linguistics professor at Stanford figured out that the words were a code hiding images; the last was the logo for Transamerica Pyramid. It was a building that was finished in San Francisco in 1972, it was also where the other Orion girl worked. The plan was simple, get in, get the guy and don't die. They were armed with modified phasers that let off a high-frequency pulse to disrupt the nanites, a sound emitter that froze everything within a specific radius, and their packs were made to vacuum and contain the nanites. Jamie could believe that Bones and Chandar put this stuff together in less than two days; Bones was smarter than he gave himself credit for.

The police were skeptical when the trio showed up; the detective they were working with, a guy named Bryce, had a little more faith in them than the others did, barely. Uhura wasn't going up with them, she would be listening from the command station with the police and communicating via headsets. She built –because she's just that good- a translation device so that she could help them understand what this guy was saying.

They stepped off the elevator and were met by a swarm, Bones froze them and Jamie shot. They climbed the stairs, freezing and shooting as they went. They got to the top and got ambushed by multiple figures made out the swarms. They put up one hell of a fight before a figure approached her, "Jamie T. Kirk." She heard it say something else but she couldn't understand it. She felt the swarm wrap itself around her neck and head, she glanced at Bones, begging him to run with her eyes before it knocked her out, she hoped that Uhura got all this.

* * *

Jamie came to with a start; she hadn't been down long, a few minutes, tops. The guy was running, she alerted Uhura that he had a flyer while she looked around the room for Bones, "Toss me your phaser." He did as she asked, Jamie caught it and ran towards the ship, "Uhura, have fleet ops to get a lock on that ship." Jamie would only get one shot, she turned the weapon to its highest setting and took aim; the blast was awesome. She hit the ship and almost blew the roof off the building, glass flew everywhere, Jamie covered her face and she noticed that Bones did the same behind a section of the wall. When she looked up, the ship was gone, "Damn!"

Bones made his way over to her and started checking to make sure she wasn't hurt, "You ok?" She nodded, the ship got away, but Jamie was sure that fleet ops had a vector on it. She let her eyes scan Bones to make sure that he was ok.

"I'm alright, Jim," he muttered. She hugged him, she was more worried about him than she was about herself. Jamie was built for this, fighting was in her blood, it was part of her DNA but Bones was a healer, he didn't fight unless he had no other options. She knew that she was the only reason he agreed to go looking for this guy; had it been anyone else, he would've stayed in the command center with Uhura. Jamie wasn't sure when it changed, but there was something different about the way she and Bones interacted with each other; they went from being fast friends to something more. Jamie touched the side of his face where a bruise was starting to form

"Len," she whispered. They looked at each other, her blue eyes taking in everything about the man in front of her. She stepped closer to him, moving slowly so he had the chance to back away and she kissed him. The feel of his lips against hers sent shivers through her, her hands held on to the sides of his jacket while one of his hands was pressed against the small of her back and the other slid into her hair which had fallen out of its bun.

"Kirk? McCoy? You alright up there?" They reluctantly broke the kiss, Uhura sounded worried even over the headset. She rested her forehead against his and spoke to Uhura.

"We're ok. We'll be down in a minute," she told the other woman. Neither of them moved, they just stood there.

"We better get down there," Bones whispered.

She nodded at him, "Yea."

He smiled and gave her a quick kiss, "We'll finish this conversation later."

Uhura hugged her; Jamie wasn't sure if she was dreaming or if she had lost her mind because this wasn't like Uhura at all. They both assured the linguist that they were ok when they were all joined by Detective Bryce who patted Bones on the shoulder, "Good job, cadets. Starfleet Operations is tracking the vessel."

Jamie nodded, "Better than nothing," she was disappointed that they didn't capture this being, they still didn't know what it was.

"I'll have one of my officers take you back to campus, the Commandant wants to see you." The trio just looked at each other.

Bones said what they were all thinking, "Just when we think it's over, they pull us back in."

* * *

It felt like they had been in the admiral's office forever, the man debriefed them, thanked them and then let them go. Jamie and Bones walked Uhura to her building and Jamie couldn't help herself, "You know, I'm not as bad as you thought I was."

Uhura took a breath, "True, but don't think that I'm going to be your best friend or anything."

Jamie chuckled, "Wouldn't dream of it. Give Gaila my love." 

"If you tell anyone I said this, I'll deny it, but I'm glad that you're ok," the linguist told her. Jamie smirked as Uhura walked into her building, maybe they could be friends one day. Jamie took Bones' hand and finally headed home.

They walked into the apartment in silence. She wasn't sure what to say, she was scared that she messed up her only real friendship by kissing him.

"You can't ignore me to save your life, darlin'. Talk to me." She looked at him; she started to speak but stopped herself. What was she going to say? 'Hey, sorry I kissed you.' Or, 'Hey, I've always wanted to kiss you.' Her favorite was, 'Please, don't hate me because I kissed you.'

Bones must have figured out what she was thinking because he took her face in his hands and looked into her eyes, "I'm not going anywhere, Jim. I think you deserve so much better than me, but if you want to try, we can. We just have to promise that if it doesn't work, we'll call it off before we hate each other."

Jamie looked at him, "Who's better than you?" That brought a laugh from both of them, "So, we're really going to do this? You know I suck at relationships, right?"

Bones nodded, "You aren't the only one, darlin', we'll figure it out."


	10. Go Out With Me

"Go out with me."

Jamie wasn't sure if she heard him correctly, she looked up from the PADD she was working on, "Huh?"

Bones chuckled, "Go out with me. You know, on a date like normal people. And before you say anything about us not being normal, we are if we want to be." Jamie considered it for a second before saying 'yes.' What else was she going to say? It had been almost a week since the fight and the kiss, aside from the knowledge that their feelings for each other weren't one-sided, nothing had really changed.

"Where to?" she asked.

Bones shook his head, "I'm not telling. Just be dressed and ready to go Saturday morning." Jamie raised an eyebrow, she knew Bones, and he was up to something.

"Got this all planned out, huh?"

He gave her a kiss, then smirked, "Someone has ta keep you on your toes, darlin'. It might as well be me."

* * *

Sitting in her last class on Friday, Jamie was getting restless, tomorrow couldn't come soon enough. Gaila and Uhura each flashed her knowing smiles as they made their way out of the building.

"I heard you have a date tomorrow."

Jamie looked at Gaila, "How the hell did you know that?"

The Orion chuckled, "I talked to your boyfriend yesterday."

"Bones is not my… actually, I'm not sure what we are, exactly." Gaila just smiled at the look on Jamie's face, she wasn't helping.

"Do you know what you're gonna wear?" Uhura asked.

Jamie shrugged, "I have some ideas but I have no clue where we're going." Jamie didn't like being in the dark, no matter how much she trusted Bones, she liked having a plan.

"Just be you," she heard Uhura say, "cute and comfortable with an edge." Jamie smiled, that was something she could do.

"You guys know where he's taking me, don't you?" she asked the pair. Both girls nodded and smiled.

Gaila gave her a sideways hug, "Don't worry. You'll love it." Before she could say anything, her PADD beeped with a message.

"It's Pike. I gotta go." Uhura nodded while Gaila smiled.

"Tell us how tomorrow goes," he green friend called after her. She told them she would and walked to her advisor's office.

* * *

"Cadet Kirk, reporting, sir," she said after Pike's yeoman let her into the office.

He looked up at her, "Sit down, Kirk." She did as instructed and waited for Pike to speak. "I was just read in on a mission that you were involved with last week." Pike had been off-planet on a training exercise with a group of third-year cadets and he missed everything that happened. At her nod, he continued, "First, I want to say good job. You, McCoy and Uhura pulled off something that many officers wouldn't have been able to do. Second, Admiral Tullsey is impressed with you. You know what A.T.T. is, Cadet?"

A.T.T. was the acronym for Advanced Tactical Training; it was a course at the academy for select students after their first year. The course was rigorous and admission to the class was by invitation only; of those asked, less than half make it through.

"Yes, sir," she replied.

Technically, every cadet is eligible to be invited to A.T.T. but command track cadets were the ones that really strive for it, especially tactical cadets like Jamie. Having the ATT rating in your file was a plus in the field, when picking assignments and helped with promotions; most who pass A.T.T. are automatically lieutenants (lower grade) upon graduation from the academy.

"You pick up with the next session, assigned to Delta team," he told her with a smirk.

She couldn't believe it. "Thank you, sir."

Pike smiled, "Don't thank me, it was all you. Now that we got that out of the way, are you ok? Nobody comm'ed me to let me know you got hurt." Jamie smiled as Pike slipped into his protective mode.

"I'm fine. I got banged up but I wasn't alone and Bones took good care of me. Not like we could tell you what was going on anyway, it was need-to-know."

He nodded, "So I heard. Nanites, that's some scary shit."

Jamie let out a breath, "I'm just glad we didn't die. I keep trying to figure out what we could've done differently but no matter how many times I run it over in my head the result is still the same." Pike could understand that, she was like him in more ways than they cared to acknowledge. She sat and talked with him for a while before his teacher's assistant entered the room.

"Glad you're ok. Now go enjoy your weekend," he told her.

She smiled, "Yes sir."

* * *

When Saturday rolled around, an alarm went off that Jamie didn't set. She got up, took a shower, got dressed and then realized that she was alone in the apartment. She was about to check Bones' room when the PADD on the coffee table beeped. She glanced at the screen and realized that the message was for her, Jamie read it aloud, "Don't worry, Jim... I didn't go far... you will find me... where the wild things are." Wild things that weren't far, she got it almost instantly. Jamie sat the PADD back on the table and grabbed her jacket. She wasn't surprised to find a cab waiting for her outside, he thought of everything.

"Your boyfriend is cute," the driver said to her and then smirked, "figured out where you're going?"

Jamie chuckled, "The San Francisco Zoo."

It only took twenty minutes to get there, "How many creds?"

The driver shook his head, "Already paid for, girly. Have fun." Jamie promised him that she would and hopped out.  She walked up to the admissions booth and learned that they were expecting her. The girl smiled and swiped her in before uttering a riddle.

"He's with the reptiles that live in a shell... but they have picked different places to dwell. They live mostly in water and on the ground. Hurry up, Jim, this is only your first stop in town." She thanked the girl and made her way into the zoo. She was gonna have to ask how he convinced these people to help him.

At 9:10 in the morning, the place was mostly empty; it had only been open for a few minutes when she got there. Jamie walked into the reptile and amphibian house and spotted him by the turtles, "I gotta say, very clever, Bones."

He greeted her with a kiss, "Thought you'd get a kick out of it. Come on." Bones handed her the holo-imager and they walked around exploring the zoo, talking about anything and taking holos of the animals and each other.

"You hungry?" Bones asked her as they returned to their starting point. It was almost one o'clock.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I am." Bones held her hand and led her out of the zoo. They walked to Beach Chalet Brewery and Café for lunch. After they were seated and ordered, Jamie just looked at him.

"What?" he asked.

Jamie chuckled, "It's silly but the only time I ever see you really smile is with Joanna, it's nice. You should smile more often." Bones flashed her another smile, she thought he was handsome when they met but this was just ridiculous, she was giddy like a little girl.

"It's normal." She looked at him, she had no idea what he was talking about. "That feeling you're having, judging by the look on your face, is normal, darlin'." She smiled, normal felt pretty damn good.

After lunch, Bones took her to the California Academy of Sciences inside Golden Gate Park. Jamie was like a kid in a candy store; the rainforest dome, holo-planetarium and living roof were her favorites and she made Bones promise that they'd bring Joanna one day because mini-Bones would love it. By the time they left, it was already dark outside. They caught a taxi back to their apartment.

"This is the weird part, technically, I'd be dropping you off."

She smiled, "If you want, you can leave me at the door and take a walk around campus."

He shook his head, "I'll pass." They walked into their apartment and before he could say anything, Jamie kissed him.

"I had fun," she whispered when she finally pulled away.

He smirked, "I can tell. So did I."


	11. I Can't Fix it if You Break Your Neck

"I can't fix it if you break your neck." Bones told her before he gave her a quick kiss and watched her leave the apartment.

Jamie met Uhura, Gaila and Gary at the shuttle bay, they were going to the site of the Starfleet Academy Desert Survival Course. It wasn't a real class, there weren't any grades or tests and the only person that mattered in the end, was the one that finished first. The cadet who won gained the respect of the upperclassmen and bragging rights as the 'King of the Plebes'. Since Jamie was technically a first year cadet, she decided to go for it. Bones refused, " _Dammit, Jim. I don't need their respect or adoration and I'm not playing in the desert. I'm a doctor, not a survival expert. That's your specialty_." She smiled at him, she knew he just didn't want to go out there, no matter how right his statement was. Pike warned her that the course was booby-trapped and told her to have fun with it.

Standing with the other cadets, Jamie could feel the eyes on her back, she should just wear a flashing neon sign on her back that said 'Hey, I'm Jamie Kirk.' She really hated this part of being in the academy.

She looked at Gaila, "Is there something on me?"

The Orion shook her head, "You mean besides the target they're painting on you?"

Uhura jumped in, "Your father is a legend and your GPA is impressive, they'll be gunning for you."

Gaila nodded, "Too bad your hot doctor decided to stay home, you might need him." Jamie smiled.

As promised, she told the girls about her date with Bones. That was two weeks ago, they'd been on another date since then; Jamie quite liked the art museum. They had another date planned for tomorrow, Jamie planned this one and she knew he'd like it. When she told Gaila and Uhura about the date, it led to hours of girl talk, something that she's never done before. When she said as much, Uhura looked at her, " _Even I've had girl talk and I'm a workaholic_." The only answer she gave them was that her childhood wasn't as easy as people thought, she knew that they could both see more behind the words but they didn't force her to elaborate.

"Gary promised us drinks weeks ago, you think you can let him out for a few tonight?" Gaila smiled bright, she and Gary went out a few times, Jamie figured that it would be a one-time thing but the pair really did like each other.

"Maybe you ladies will let me buy the drinks," came the voice of the big Andorian cadet behind them, "I'm Thanas. You ladies should stick with me." Gaila smiled at him while Uhura rolled her eyes and kept stretching.

Jamie looked at him, "We're good, thanks for the offer though." The three women were right on the starting line, while other people milled about, they handed over their communicators, phasers and tricorders without argument and when people pushed, they pushed back.

"Finally," Uhura uttered from next to her as a group of upperclassmen stepped onto a rock that was to the side of the starting line; Gary was among them.

One of the upperclassmen stepped forward, "Alright, plebes. Ahead of you is the Starfleet Desert Survival Course. Your only objective is to be first to finish. There will be no second place and the winner gets no prize, just the knowledge that they are the best in the class. You go on my mark."

At the shot from the phaser, they were off. Idiots were sprinting in an effort to get ahead but even though she couldn't see the end, Jamie knew that this was at least a marathon length course, and it had obstacles. The first was ahead of her, Jamie easily jumped over the pit that some of their classmates were pulling themselves out of. This is where growing up in so many different places came in handy, most of these people had never been on this type of terrain before. The three women kept pace with each other and while there were some people in front of them, they were dropping like flies; either too fast from the line or taken out by the booby-traps. They dodged the stun-mine and the phaser fire.

Gaila spoke from behind her left side, "They aren't kidding, huh?"

Jamie chuckled, "Nope."

Some guy got taken down by a snakebite and she passed more than a few twisted ankles or busted knees. She kinda wished Bones was here, if only to help patch people up. The course led to a cliff face, there were a quite a few cadets who were scared to go, Jamie just smirked and found hand and foot holds. Uhura had an easy time but Gaila fell behind them. A kid rushed down above them and ended up falling, aside from getting the wind knocked out of him, he was okay so they kept going. They had finally made it to the last leg of the course, a flat out run.

The Andorian from before was still ahead of them, the two women glanced at each other and made a silent vow to beat him. They both took off on a sprint, they caught up to him and Jamie dug deep, she edged them both out at the very last second. The group of upperclassmen cheered and Jamie found herself pulled into a hug by Gary.

"How bad is your ankle?" her friend asked.

Jamie chuckled, "Bones is gonna fix it than kill me." She sprained it coming down the cliff but she wasn't about to let it stop her, she knew Bones wouldn't be happy but she also knew that he would patch her up.

* * *

"I thought I told you not to hurt yourself," he grumbled at her. Jamie was sitting in an exam room at the Medical College an hour later listening to Bones complain about her lack of self-preservation.

"You told me not to break my neck, and I didn't. I won, Bones." He grumbled some more as he slid the regenerator off her ankle. "Bones." When he didn't look at her, she stood up and stepped into his personal space. "Len." He looked up at her. "I won." She smiled big and Jamie knew that she had him, Bones huffed before he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her.

"Good job, darlin'," he said against her lips.

"How long before you get outta here?" Jamie asked.

Bones glanced at the chronometer, "Two hours, and no, you can't stay. You are very distracting." She pouted before giving him another kiss.

"Am I good to go, Doc?"

He chuckled, "Yes, please stay out of trouble. At least until I get home."

She smiled, "I promise, I will stay out of trouble until you get home but I can't promise anything after that."

Bones shook his head, "Which is why I told you to wait for me. Now, get out of here, I have to patch up some of the other idiots that came in here with you."


	12. Where Are You Takin' Me, Darlin'?

"Where are you takin' me, darlin'?" Jamie shook her head, she wouldn't tell him. She heard about this a few weeks ago and had him make sure that he didn't have a shift. She knew that the dress she was wearing was probably getting to him, Jamie was also wearing her leather jacket and a pair of boots, but the dress threw him for a loop.

"Come on, we're almost there," she said as she pulled Bones into a bar called Dillinger's. She could tell he was about to say something about it until he looked around and smiled.

"A whiskey tasting?" he asked.

She nodded, "Yep. Whatcha think?" Everyone else spent Valentine's Day draped in red and pink, that wasn't going to work for Jim and Bones, they weren't a hearts and flowers kind of couple. They agreed that there wouldn't be any gifts either, the consensus was that they had each other, anything else was just extra.

He chuckled, "This is perfect, darlin'." He gave her a kiss and they moved into the room.

* * *

"Close your eyes and smell this one." Jamie did as he asked; part of whiskey tasting was the aroma. To be honest, she thought Bones smelled better than everything else did, a mix of bourbon and sunshine with a tiny hint of hospital. The liquid in the glass under her nose was hard to describe, the man in charge of the event told them to describe the samples however they wanted so Jamie gave it a shot.

"It's like being in your parent's backyard, just when a breeze rolls through, you can smell all the apples and the trees and the grass and you have no idea what I'm talking about."

Bones smiled, "Actually, I can understand every bit of what you just said."

* * *

Jamie couldn't believe she had so much fun not getting drunk in a room full of alcohol, but she did; she had a slight buzz that was gone by the time they got back to Hernandez Hall. Jamie took off her jacket and pulled off her boots as soon as they entered the apartment. She made a move to go into her room but was stopped by the arms that wrapped around her waist. She leaned her back into Bones' chest and smiled, "Hey, you."

He whispered "Hello, beautiful" as he kissed her neck, it sent shivers though her body. They made a decision to go slow, so they hadn't done anything more than make out and a little under the shirt action but they were both at their breaking point. "I really like this dress, Jim." Jamie chuckled when he continued, "If you want to keep it, I suggest you take it off."

Jamie was too distracted by his lips on her skin to say anything other than "hmm." She turned around in his arms and kissed him, slowly at first but he deepened it, almost painfully. "Bones," she whispered as he kissed behind her ear and along her neck. Jamie lost all train of thought at the feel of his hands and lips on her body. She almost cried when he pulled back, the look on his face stopped her.

"If we don't stop now, darlin', I won't be able to." 

"What if I don't want to stop?" She whispered it, almost afraid of what he would say. She looked into his eyes and she could see the emotions running through them, he must have made a decision because he kissed her neck.

"Then we won't. Are you sure, darlin'?" his voice took on a whole different quality that she found irresistible. Jamie nodded, she took his hand and pulled him into his room.

Jamie started to turn around but he stopped her and unzipped her dress. She could feel his fingers on her skin as he slid it off her body. It dropped to the floor and landed in a puddle around her feet, Jamie heard Bones take a breath as she turned around to look at him and stepped out of the dress.

"You're beautiful, darlin'."

His words made Jamie blushed, something that she rarely ever does. It wasn't like she's never done this before, it was just that nobody ever looked at her like that, like she hung the stars in the sky. It was new and exciting and a little scary. Jamie slowly unbuttoned his shirt, he didn't move, he just watched her. She pushed it over his shoulders and let it drop to the floor, moving her hands to his waistband; she unbuttoned his jeans.

"Jim." Her eyes flickered to his at the sound of his voice. Bones kicked off his pants and boxers then pulled Jamie against his body. He kissed her jaw and then her lips while he slid her undergarments off her body and laid her on his bed. He just stood there for a moment, taking her in with his eyes. He joined her on the bed and positioned himself over her, "I love you, darlin'."

She smiled, "I love you too."

Jamie couldn't control the shiver that rolled though her body as he entered her.

"Len," she whispered, it felt like her whole body was on fire from the inside out. Jamie lost herself to the feel of him moving inside her, his hands on her skin and the feel of his body against hers. Jamie could feel the tension building inside of her as he pushed her closer and closer to the edge with slow measured thrusts.

"Lemme see those beautiful blue eyes of yours, darlin'." Jamie didn't even realize that she closed them, locking her eyes with his sent a rush through her that took her breath away. There was so much in his eyes, they were so raw and open to her, she could see the passion, lust and an overwhelming amount of love. Jamie wasn't used to being loved, she knew that she was liked and even lusted after, but not loved. The thought brought tears to her eyes and his name fell from her lips in a choked sob. His movements faltered as he moved faster, they became less controlled. Every thought was pushed from her mind as she focused on the feel of him; he kissed along her jaw and whispered in her ear, "I got ya, Jim. Let go." She was so lost in him that Jamie fell apart at his words. Bones didn't stop, he kept moving, harder and faster pulling another orgasm from her on the heels of the last one. He her name was on his lips as he joined her fall over the edge.

Jamie was aware that Bones had moved them so that she was laying on top of him and pulled a cover over their bodies, not that she cared either way, she could spend forever wrapped in his arms like this.

When her brain started to come back, she chuckled, "To think, we could've been doing that for months."

She was rewarded with a laugh, "We never would've made it to class."


	13. I Got Something for You

"I got something for you."

Jamie blinked her eyes open and mumbled, "Huh?" This was the most comfortable she'd ever been in her life; laying across his chest, listening to his heart beating.

Bones chuckled, "Wow, I made the Jamie T. Kirk speechless? l said that I got something for you."

Jamie shifted so that she could look at him, "I thought we said no gifts?"

He tucked her hair behind her ear and nodded, "We did. It's not really a gift gift. It's something Pike and I were working on for your birthday but we had to work out the logistics. Trust me, you'll thank us." Jamie thought about it, what would Bones and Pike think was worth working together to do for her.

"Ok," there wasn't any point in arguing with him over something that was already a done deal. She knew that he was expecting a fight but she just didn't have it in her to argue about whatever this something was, especially if it took them over a month to work it out.

"You aren't going to argue with me? Maybe I should deliver news to you like this all the time," Bones tightened his hold on her.

She smirked, "You mean, naked and in bed after mind-numbing sex? I don't think I would complain if you did."

Bones laughed, "Go to sleep, darlin'."

* * *

Jamie woke up on her back with Bones' hands caressing her body, "I thought we had somewhere to be."

He kissed her neck, "We have time." Jamie was going to argue but the words never made it past her lips. Those hands of his should be illegal. After a very nice shower together, Jamie found herself sitting with Bones in the campus courtyard.

"What are we doing here?" She couldn't help herself, Bones wouldn't tell her anything the whole way there.

He smiled, "Well, darlin', we're here to see him." Jamie followed his gaze to two men walking in their direction. She easily identified one of the men as Pike and it took her less than a second to place the other face, he looked the same as the last time she saw him, just older.

"How did you...?" she didn't have the words. Jamie couldn't help the tears that came to her eyes. She jumped up and practically run to the two men, slamming into the younger one. "Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. I should kick your ass. Would if I didn't love you so damn much." Jamie held him tight as he chuckled.

"I might have to let you. I owe you one, Jimmy," the tall blonde man told her.

She pulled back just enough to look at him, "God, you look like dad."

He smiled the 'Kirk smile' at her, "I'm not the only one, short stack." Sam was here. How the hell did they get Sam here? She rolled her eyes.

"I'm not short, at least, not anymore," Jamie retorted. It felt like they just saw each other a few days ago, as opposed to being apart for the last thirteen years. "What the hell are you doing here? How?" she asked her big brother.

Sam nodded towards Bones, "Thank your boyfriend. I've been looking for you for years. I saw you on the news last month, fleet was making a big deal outta you joining up. I tried to talk to you, but Starfleet thought I was a reporter and wouldn't let me. Then a couple weeks ago, I got a comm from a doctor, looking for me." Jamie looked at Bones.

The southerner chuckled, "I might have used some of my authority as your doctor and a favor from Captain Pike to get his information." Pike stood there like it was the most normal thing in the world.

"McCoy, I think we should let them get reacquainted," Pike said.

Bones nodded, "Yes, sir." He shook hands with Sam before giving Jamie a quick kiss, "I'll see you later, darlin'. Nice to finally meet you, George. Maybe one day you can tell me why she calls you Sam."

Jamie chuckled, "Same reason I call you 'Bones' and you both call me 'Jim'… because we can." Pike laughed and put a hand on her shoulder before he and Bones left them alone.

"He's a nice guy. He's so in love with you that it's written on his face," Sam said as he watched the pair of men walk away.

Jamie smiled as she nodded, "Well that's good since I'm in love with him, too." They decided to take a walk around campus. "So, what ya been up to since you left me with Frank?" she asked her brother.

"Well, I guess I should apologize, I really am sorry about that, Jimmy."

She shook her head, "I was kidding, it wasn't that bad. At least, not until he got hurt at work but we can save that for later. Tell me what you've been doing."

"Well, let's see. I'm a research biologist. I'm married and I have a son named Peter, he'll be four in April. Right now, we live on Ganjitsu but that might change soon."

Jamie looked at him, "Not surprised, I told you that you were smart." Growing up, Sam taught her so much stuff it was ridiculous. He always said that she was the smart one and she always reminded him that he taught her, so, he was actually the smart one. "What's your wife's name? What's your family like?"

"Aurelan," he said with a smile. "She's smart and beautiful and the love of my life. I have no idea why she puts up with me. She would've come but she's pregnant with our second and her doctor said no traveling. Peter is a lot like you were as a kid, brilliant and rambunctious. I guess that's what I get for naming him after you. His middle name is James." She laughed as he described some of the stuff that her nephew got up to.

"He's only three? You have your work cut out for you." They talked more before he asked about Frank and Tarsus. Sam knew that's where their aunt and uncle lived and he told her that after their mother died he went back to Riverside to look for her. One of his teachers told him that Jamie moved to live with family off planet. When the reports came down about the massacre, he tried to find her but Starfleet couldn't –or wouldn't- tell him anything. He saw holos of the kids and knew she was J.T. but there was no information on her. It wasn't until her last birthday when he knew where she was.

They talked about anything they could think of until they were interrupted by someone calling his name, "Hey, George!"

They both turned around and Sam smiled, "Hey, Hikaru." They did the 'guy hug' thing before Jamie spoke.

"You guys know each other?" she asked. Both men nodded and Sam answered her question.

"His family lives down the street from me. Small universe."

Sulu looked at her, "I've known George for years, don't know why I never mentioned it to you. We have classes together all the time." Hikaru Sulu was a command track cadet whose focus was on helm control. He joined Starfleet before her but she caught up to him in class.

Jamie laughed, "Who knows? We've been busy."

"We'll go with that. I gotta run, I just wanted to say hi to George. Later, Kirk," Sulu said with a chuckle. With that, the pilot ran in the direction he came from. Sam explained about Sulu's mom being a bio-engineer who worked in the same research facility as he did.

Eventually, Sam had to go. Pike had pulled some strings so that he could ride on a ship heading in his direction, which meant only getting to spend the day with Jamie. She didn't ask why, if it was the other way around, she would've done the same. "You gotta come visit. Bring Leonard with you," he told her.

She nodded before pulling him into a hug, "Don't disappear on me again. I love you."

He held her tighter, "I wouldn't dare. I love you too." Sam got on the shuttle with a group of officers and Jamie watched as they took off.

* * *

"Thank you," was out of her mouth the second she walked into her apartment.

Bones looked up from his PADD and smiled, "Told you that you would thank me. You are very welcome."

She sat down next to him, "Why'd you do it?" 

"I know that if it were my sister, you would do the same thing. And I love you."


	14. What Did You Do?

"What did you do?" was the first thing out his mouth after Bones took one look at her. Jamie and the rest of team Delta were all ordered to go to medical. They were all beat up, but it seemed like her injuries were worse.

She sighed, "Why do you always think it was my fault? We got our asses kicked during the security final, literally." He ran the tricorder over the whole group; they had cuts, bruises and even broken bones. Ha, broken bones.

"Ok, what did Tikhonov do to you?" he asked her. Viktor Tikhonov was the leader of team Alpha. For the security final, the two teams were pitted against each other. Jamie's team had the better score for the first contact final, and Viktor was not happy.

A.T.T. was a semester long, Jamie's team picked up the first week of February and ended the first week of June, finals took up the week after that. She doesn't know why they picked her as the leader, what she did know was that it zapped a lot of her already crowded schedule. It was a good thing that she and Bones lived in the same apartment; otherwise they wouldn't have had any time together. Jamie had even taken to sleeping in his room, which was slowly becoming their room. They promised each other that even though they were busy, they still had to make time for each other, even if it's only a few minutes. Jamie was glad that finals were in full swing and they were all due to go on break for a month. She wished that she could say it was because she was excited to see her brother's family and the McCoy's –which she was- but she was just happy to have time off with Bones.

"It's not that bad, Bonesy," she said when he pulled her into an exam room.

He sucked in a breath, "Your nose is broken, even though you reset it, it still needs the regen. And Raynor's arm is fractured. Don't tell me it ain't that bad, class isn't supposed to kill ya, Jim." Jamie let him huff as he patched her up. She'd smile at him, except her face hurt.

"You could kiss it better," she told him.

Bones looked at her, "Don't start with me, darlin'. I will hypo you into next week. I'm not in the mood, no matter how hot you look in black tactical gear. I should've went with you." Sometimes, Bones watched her team run training exercises. They usually had a doctor -Bones- around when they ran through stuff but during the exam, there wasn't anything he could've done if he was there. Jamie knew that he didn't like team Alpha at all. Viktor was an arrogant jerk, he was a good tactician but Jamie couldn't see him in command of a ship.

"I'm not starting with you. I could use a kiss from my favorite doctor, it would make me feel better." Bones looked at her for a minute, then he placed a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Now, sit still and let it work, I'm going to check on the others."

He was almost out of the room when Jamie spoke, "Thank you, Len. I know you hate patching me up, so thank you for fixing me." There were so many meanings to what she said. Jamie wasn't just talking about the physical injuries and he knew it. She did feel a little bad, he was a doctor, so it was his job to fix injuries but seeing someone you care about bleeding wasn't easy no matter who you are.

"I don't _hate_ patching you up. What I hate is seeing you get hurt in the first place. I'm just glad that there are some things I can fix. Now, sit still, darlin'," he told her with a small smile.

* * *

"What are we gonna do about Alpha?" Raynor asked her. Jamie didn't know anything beyond figuring out how to beat them for the science final.

"We should prank them. Especially Viktor," Brax offered. Jamie laughed at her friends and teammates as they tossed around ideas. They were some of the best minds that she'd ever met and they liked to have a good laugh. As much as Viktor got on her nerves, she didn't think setting up a prank for him was a good idea.

"After the final, before break, guys," Jamie suggested. Team Delta, Gaila, Uhura, Braxim, Kelso and Gary were sitting in her living room studying for multiple finals when Jamie's communicator went off, it was Bones, "Hey Bones, when you coming home?"

"This is nurse Chapel, is this Cadet Jamie Kirk?"

Her heart stopped, "Yes, what happened?"

The nurse told her to get over to the medical college. Jamie –and Gaila, Uhura and Braxim- ran over to the hospital, Pike met them there.

"What happened?" she asked before she even stopped walking.

Doctor Griffin looked at her and Pike, "He took a beating. He has multiple blunt force injuries and lacerations. His arm was broken, but it's under the regenerator now. He's asking for you." Jamie glanced at Pike and her friends before she followed the doctor.

"Len," she whispered as she entered the room.

He looked up at her, "Hey, darlin'. I would say that it isn't that bad but it kinda is."

She stood next to the bed and took his good hand, "What happened?"

He slowly shook his head, "I think you pissed Tikhonov off. I didn't get a good look but I'm pretty sure that this was his team. I guess he's too scared of you to go after you directly. Maybe he sees me as your Achilles' heel or somethin', I honestly don't know."

"That doesn't make any sense. He has the advantage, the teams aren't even anymore." Jamie's team had suffered the loss of one of it's members when Collins decided to leave the Academy after the security final. Braxim switched from another team to round them out to five, they were going into the last final with a new teammate. Bones didn't say anything as she ran the reasoning through her head. "I'm sorry they came after you because of me."

He shook his head, "Better me than you, you practically have your own exam room in this place." He gave her a minute to fill in Pike and the others, Jamie asked Pike to let her worry about team Alpha and he reluctantly agreed that as long as she didn't go beat them up he would stay out of it. A few hours later, Griffin let her take Bones home. Kelso, Gary and the rest of Delta had cleaned up and cleared out; someone even made something to eat and left a note that it just needed to be warmed up.

"I'm gonna kill him. I'll kick his team's ass, then, I'll kill him," she was mad. Not mad, livid.

He shook his head, "No you won't kill him. I won't let you hurt someone, even if it's for me."


	15. Think Like Me

"Think like me," Bones said as they lay in bed. She thought hard about what he just said. The only thing she had left before break was the A.T.T. science mission final; Tanika Station. Jamie had been trying to figure out how to succeed at the mission, and Bones' advice was to think like him. "I'm a scientist, Jim. You tactical guys swoop in, take over and ask questions later but my job is to observe and ask questions first. When you go in there, think about what I would do, not what your instincts tell you to do." Jamie could understand that. She was still upset at the other team for what they did to Bones but decided that beating their score was a million times better then kicking their asses. Maybe not a million but it was holding her attention.

The morning of the exam, Bones went to the shuttle bay to do the pre-mission exam, per Jamie's request. He checked the team over and slipped his girl a note. He was also there as a huge 'fuck you' to team Alpha. He knew that Pike would be among the observers for the test but he was shocked to learn that Spock and Telemark would be also. They were all tense, Raynor more than the others. Bones gave them the ok just before they were called to load up on the shuttle Gilliam. Glorak was excited to go, so was Braxim. Raynor didn't show any emotions either way and Simmons looked a little scared. Bones gave her a quick kiss.

"Nice suit. Good luck, darlin'. I should be home when you get back." Jamie couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips as she made her way to the shuttle.

"What does it say?" Brax saw the note that Bones passed her and asked as soon as they were outta earshot.

"It says that 'Nothing is ever all that it seems, be careful not to jump without a parachute. You are sexy as hell when you're about to kick ass. Good luck. I love you.'"

Brax smirked, "He's not as grumpy as he likes us to think." Jamie tucked it into a pocket on her holster and kept walking.

On their way to the station, Commander Tomlin gave them their simulated briefing over vid-comm. "Three days ago, fleet intel intercepted a signal from a deep-space object of considerable mass. Patrol tracked the signal to an active platform of advanced design. Communication attempts have been met with no response. A security recon team discovered a simple airlock, entered and established an outpost. Based on preliminary visual and sensor data there appears to be an advanced alien eco-system. Like a greenhouse in space." The Commander paused to let it sink in, "We've named it Tanika. Captain Kirk, your team is being deployed for observation and sampling. Any questions?"

"Sentient life?" Jamie asked.

"Negative," was Tomlin's reply. She asked about the air, any mechanical equipment and the gravity. The timing was perfect because she wrapped up with Tomlin and arrived at the station. When they docked into Tanika Station, Jamie took a look outside and it took her breath away.

"Alright, gentlemen. Helmets on, it's time for EVA," she ordered. Extravehicular activities were just a fancy way to say spacewalk; the team had to go outside to get into the station. Because they got a lot of training with the skintight bio-suits, they were ready in less than a minute. The EVA was quick and simple. They got inside and everyone stopped.

Simmons stood next to Jamie, "Holy mother of God." The place was massive and beautiful, plants like she'd never seen before and streams that led to a huge lake.

It took her breath away, "This is…"

"Is that water?" Glorak asked from behind her.

Braxim confirmed, "No surprise, water is the most abundant thing in the universe."

Jamie ordered Raynor to take air readings so that they could take their helmets off, which she did with his assessment reading that the air was okay. They spent three hours –two longer then they planned- making observations, taking notes and imaging the area. Raynor and Glorak were about to take samples when Jamie stopped them.

"They're just plants, Kirk," Raynor said to her but she shook her head.

"I don't think so," she thought to what Bones told her about science, "If we take samples, what are we killing in the process. Not everything is as it appears and I think these life forms are intelligent. We're all having that feeling like we're being watched, I think we are."

Raynor shook his head, "Look Kirk, I know your story. We all do. Most of your life, this was the last thing you wanted to do, join Starfleet. I've wanted to be a bridge officer since I was six." He glanced at everyone else, "What if she's wrong? What if it's just plants and we fail because of her theory?" Jamie looked at him, she knew that he was meticulous with science.

"What do you mean, Raynor?" she asked.

"I don't mean anything, Captain," his reply was a cop out and they all knew it.

Jamie took a breath, "I get what you're saying. For starters, you're wrong about me, everyone thinks that they know my story but the only people who know the sad truth are my brother, Pike and McCoy. Now, if we run through here clipping off pieces of these beings, we could do some real damage. It's bad science, you and I both know that the last thing we want to do is bad science. It won't kill us to take our time. We have to stop thinking of this as a test and we have to stop assuming that this place was built by beings like us." Jamie knew that they were either with her or they weren't, "That lake down there has some kind of properties that I've never seen before, I think that it's sustaining the station. I'm not saying you're wrong, just that we might not want to cut up out hosts in their own home."

Raynor thought about it, "I didn't think about it like that. You might be right. Orders?" Jamie smiled and they got back to work.

They were busy when the siren went off and her communicator came to life, "Delta, we have a situation, you need to evac. I repeat, evacuate the station. Hull breach."

They all put their helmets on and grabbed their gear before sprinting to the airlock. Jamie wasn't sure if it was a real breach or a simulated one, she waited until they were on the shuttle to wonder. "Incoming comm. for your team ma'am." The pilot called from the cockpit.

They all sat at attention as Tomlin came on screen, "I'm going to turn you over to Admiral Miller." Miller was the man in charge of the Academy's testing systems.

"At ease, cadets," the admiral ordered. They all let out a breath and listened to Miller. "Team Captain Kirk, I assume that you will speak for your team." When she confirmed his assumption, he continued, "I have your final assessment. I've been in charge of this test for seventeen years and I've never seen it come together so fast. Like the other simulations, it isn't black or white but I've never seen a team take your course of action. Ever." Jamie was scared that she fucked up and he was just holding her over the fire before he dropped her in it.

"Yes, sir."

"Do you have any questions before I get to this?" the admiral asked.

She had one, "Was the breach real, sir?"

He shook his head, "No cadet, simulated. We like to see what happens when we drop an emergency on a team. Your team was calm and paid attention to detail, one of the best exits I've ever seen. Now, we have a new chief programmer for the test simulations, I'm going to share with you his thoughts on your exam because the entire assessment team was of the same mindset. 'Tanika Station is a dormant world with its own ecological system and prevents a challenge to cadets as it is full of familiar things functioning in unfamiliar ways. Team Delta acknowledged this meta-reality and their decision to refrain from standard specimen collection was the most correct and logical course of action. Sampling would have harmed, and likely killed, the highly intelligent species occupying Tanika Station. Team Delta should be commended for their outstanding attention to detail.' I must say, you did an amazing job, cadets. Miller out." Jamie looked over at her team, who gave her smiles, except Glorak but he doesn't smile.

"Man, I'm glad you didn't listen to me," Raynor said from next to her.

She chuckled, "Wait 'til I tell Bones."


	16. Dammit, Jim, You Promised

"Dammit, Jim, you promised." Jamie knew that Bones wasn't happy but she really could care less.

"I told you that I wouldn't kill him, I didn't say I wouldn't hurt him. Besides, he started it." Viktor and two of his guys approached her while she was on her way home from a stop at Gaila and Uhura's room. Team Alpha found out that her team not only scored better than they did at Tanika Station, but that they earned the top score since the test's induction. She wasn't in the mood to deal with their bullshit and was going to ignore them but Viktor put his hands on her and she was done being civil. "He was already on my shit list because he hurt you. It's his own damn fault, Bones. You know what happens when people touch me without permission." When they first moved into their apartment together, Bones tried to wake her up after she fell asleep on the couch. He was lucky that his doctor reflexes kicked in, because she almost punched him. He'd seen her lay a few guys out at bars, they got touchy-feely and she introduced them to her right hook.

Viktor didn't know when to leave well enough alone and he paid for it; Jamie broke his arm and his jaw, she knocked idiot number two out in one punch and idiot number three was going to be fifty before his balls dropped again because of how hard she kicked him. Jamie broke a couple fingers from hitting Viktor and had a cut on her face from the knife he pulled out; coward brought backup and a weapon. Jamie looked over Bones' shoulder, "I'm not in trouble, am I?"

Pike shook his head, "Nope. The security system recorded it, and we managed to find footage of the attack on McCoy buried in junk data. Tikhonov will be lucky if he doesn't end up in a penal colony, he's done with Starfleet." Well, thank God for small miracles. It sucked because he could've been a good officer if only he could curb the arrogance and aggression. Pike checked to make sure that she was alright before he left to do damage control, cadets getting into fights happened, but three-on-one with a knife was a different story.

"Can we go now, your shift is over and the regenerator is done with my hand?" she asked Bones. They were due to get on a shuttle for her brother's place on Ganjitsu. Her boyfriend grumbled but he nodded at her. "I'm not sorry that I defended myself, even if you're mad at me."

Of all the things she expected him to do, being pulled into a kiss wasn't on the list. When he pulled away, he looked into her eyes.

"I'm not mad at you, Jim. I'm mad at Viktor. You can fight your own battles; this would've ended a lot worse if you couldn't. I should've been there." He looked at her, "I can't believe you broke your hand."

"Oh God, tell me that's not what's bothering you? The fact that you weren't there to protect me?" He shrugged but Jamie knew better. He was upset that he couldn't fight for her. "Damn caveman." She took a deep breath and reached for his hands, "These are not the hands of a fighter; they are the hands of a healer. They are the hands that hold your daughter and help your parents. They put me together and show me just how loved I am. You don't get to ruin them on the likes of Viktor Tikhonov."

He looked at her and nodded, "I still want to kill him."

Jamie laughed, "Now you know how I felt when they beat you up." She kissed his lips then pulled him from the room; they had a shuttle to catch.

* * *

"Don't tell me that you're scared to fly." Jamie and Bones both looked up at Sulu.

"He suffers from, and I quote, 'aviophobia. That means fear of dying in something that flies.'" Jamie did her best impersonation of Bones on that first day, she chuckled when he glared at her. "We're working on it though; otherwise next year is going to suck." Jamie and Sulu both shared at laugh at Bones' expense. He rolled his eyes but didn't say anything as Sulu took the empty seat next to him.

"You know, maybe you should learn to fly sooner, rather than later, it might make you feel better," the pilot said to Bones. Everyone had to have a basic understanding of flight controls on a shuttle, just in case. Bones' flight class was supposed to be next semester; Jamie already knew how to fly -thank you, Pike- and tested out. Sulu continued, "I could teach you. I have plenty of free simulation hours that we could use."

Bones was going to argue but Jamie spoke first, "That's not a bad idea. I'd teach you myself but the two of us alone in a small room is not a good idea."

Bones looked at the two of them, "You're both crazy."

Jamie shook her head and Sulu chuckled, "Only a little, doc."

* * *

The next day, they found themselves on Ganjitsu, "Jimmy!" She smiled at her brother but before she could say anything to him, she felt a little body connect with her legs. Jamie looked down into a pair of eyes that looked like hers.

"Hi, Aunt Jimmy." Little Peter James Kirk was so much bigger than he looked over comm.

"Well, hello to you, Peter."

He smiled big and looked at his dad, "she remembered my name."

Sam smiled, "I told you she would." Jamie picked the little boy up and hugged him. Since they reconnected, Jamie and Sam talked to each other all the time and she's had more than a few conversations with Peter. Bones laughed at her when she asked how she could love someone that she's never even met before, she would do anything for the little boy.

"How could I forget you, Pete? You're my favorite nephew." Peter smiled and hugged her tighter. Eventually he looked over her shoulder.

"Hi, Mister Hiri and Doctor Bones," the little boy said. Jamie laughed at the face Bones made at the nickname, he tried to get Pete to call him anything else, but that one stuck.

Sulu smiled at her nephew, "Hey, Peter. Long time no see." He was heading off to his house, he offered to introduce them to his mother when they got a chance and left in the opposite direction.

Sam and Aurelan didn't live far from the space dock, so they decided to walk. Sam grabbed her bag and she kept her nephew in her arms. He talked the whole way; baby Alexander and shuttles seemed to be his favorite topics for the moment. Sam and Peter pointed things out as they walked, looking at some of the buildings as they went.

"Wow, place is bigger than I thought it'd be," Bones muttered. The city of Ishikawa wasn't huge but it was beautiful, it reminded Jamie of Tarsus before Kodos killed half the colony; this was what it could've grown into.

They walked into the small house and Peter motioned to get down, Jamie placed him on his feet and he grabbed her hand. Peter pulled her through the house, Sam and Bones smiling behind her; Jamie found herself in the nursery where Aurelan was putting the sleeping baby in his crib. Alexander looked like his father. Where Pete looked like Aurelan with Jamie's eyes, baby Alex was Sam through and through. Before she could say anything, Aurelan put a finger over her lips and pointed out of the room. They all left baby Alex to his dreams and went back into the living room.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Jamie," Aurelan said as she pulled her into a hug, "and you must be Leonard." She hugged Bones, too.

The woman was gorgeous and motherhood certainly agreed with her; when Jamie whispered as much to Sam, he told her that he was a lucky guy to have such beautiful and brilliant women in the family. After they were introduced, Sam showed them where they'd be staying and gave them a little time to get cleaned up. They both changed out of their uniforms and went to join everyone when Jamie heard the baby.

She stepped into his room, "Hey, little guy." He calmed a little and looked at her, "No need for all that noise." Jamie didn't know a lot about babies since Peter and Joanna were the youngest people she's ever met but she did know that most liked to be held and you have to support the baby's head. She carefully picked him up and held him in her arms.

"You're a natural," her sister-in-law said as she walked into the room with Alexander.

Jamie looked at Bones who just smirked at her, "What?"

He shook his head, "I'll tell you in a few years."


	17. You Sure He Ain't Your Kid?

"You sure he ain't your kid?" Bones asked her. Jamie had a kindred spirit in her nephew. Sam was right in calling him a mini version of her. The pair built a blanket fort in her brother's living room and after a kid movie marathon –because even adults love Frozen- they passed out. Jamie woke up to find that Bones was watching them; she processed his question before answering.

"I'm not, not entirely," she muttered.

They were heading back to earth the next day and Peter was not happy about it. For the last two weeks, he was with them almost everywhere they went; Jamie and Bones even woke up with Peter in bed with them a few times. Bones actually smiled when Peter started calling him 'Uncle Bones,' Jamie laughed when he grumbled that it was okay. She ran her fingers through the little boy's hair as he slept curled up next to her.

"Leaving him is gonna suck, isn't it?" Bones nodded. Jamie looked up from Peter to him, "How do you do this? I mean, you're a dad and you leave Joanna with your family all the time. I'm just his aunt and I don't think I can do it." Bones sat down on the floor near her head, which she rested on his leg.

"It's not easy but I know my daughter is safe and she's loved and that helps. Just because you aren't one of his parents doesn't mean that your love for him isn't just as real, look at Pike, or Joanna and Donna. Pike's not even related to you but that man would go to the ends of the universe for you. And my sister has always cared more for Jo than Jocelyn ever did, you saw that at Christmas. That's why she's in Georgia with her." Donna and Joanna were more like mom and daughter then aunt and niece. At first, Jamie thought that it was because they lived together but the more she considered it, the more she realized that Donna would do anything for that kid.

"You ever think about having more kids?" she asked out of pure curiosity.

Bones shook his head, "If I'm being honest, not really. Joanna was Jocelyn's way of keeping me happy. She practically begged me for a baby, I didn't realize until she was pregnant that she thought it would help our marriage but it only made things worse. Jocelyn wasn't the center of my world anymore because I love Joanna more than anything. If I wasn't at work, I was with my daughter and it drove her crazy."

Jamie could understand that, Bones loved his little girl like crazy. He hit workaholic status a month after classes started; she had to drag him places most of the time. She liked that she wasn't his center of attention, she worked almost as much as he did and she was used to being by herself a lot. They hadn't talked about children, yet. Their line of work made it difficult and she didn't what any child to go through what she did. If she really thought about it, she could see herself having children, but only with Bones.

Jamie took a deep breath, "I just want him to know that I love him, you know." Bones was about to respond but a voice entering the room stopped him.

"He knows that his aunt loves him," Aurelan said as she sat down in the spot on the couch that Bones vacated. "George told him about you, even before he knew where you were. Peter would always ask if you loved him, George would tell him that you love him as much as we do and he was right." Jamie smiled at the knowledge that even separated by a decade and a few light years, her brother still knew her well enough to know that she'd love his son.

"Are you guys getting sappy in here?" Sam had the baby in his arms, little Alexander was sucking on his hand.

"He looks like you do after a few too many," she hit Bones' leg at his statement.

Sam laughed, "That sounds like a story."

Jamie glanced at her brother as best as she could from her fort, "It's not."

She looked at Bones, "Don't even think about it." They both laughed at her. "Great, they've teamed up on me, Aury." Aurelan looked at her brother and he stopped laughing.

"Leonard." Bones looked at her and he stopped laughing too, "And I thought that my mama and Donna were scary together." Jamie was worried that she and Aurelan wouldn't get along but they took to each other almost instantly.

"That's Kirk women for you, Leonard." They all laughed at that.

"Aunt Jimmy."

Jamie looked at Peter, "yea, sweetie?"

"What's so funny?" All the adults chuckled.

"Your dad and Uncle are scared that mama and Aunt Jimmy are going to take over the universe… it's a Kirk thing," she told him.

He smiled, "You might, but they shouldn't be scared because you're all on the same side. The bad guys should be scared, though."

Jamie sent her brother a smug look and then laughed, "That's right, Pete. I thought I was the genius around here. You sure you aren't hiding a brilliant brain in there?" He laughed as she started to tickle him, "Wanna gimme a hand, Doctor Bones?" He jumped right in and eventually, so did Sam after he handed Alex to Aurelan; they –and the fort- ended up in a pile on the floor.

"Hey, what's with the tears, darlin'?" Jamie didn't even realize she was crying until Bones wiped them from her face and Sam pulled her into his arms.

"Hey, sis. It's ok. It's ok." The last time she cried was at Pike's cabin.

Jamie didn't like to let people see the soft underbelly that truly made her who she is. She was a fighter by circumstance, not by choice. Jamie was never given the option to be anything other than what she was because she was left to figure out her own survival when she was a child. By the time she joined Starfleet, fighting to keep herself and others alive was where she excelled because she lived it. If only those idiots knew just what she's been though.

Jamie thought that if she'd been able to leave with Sam, maybe she would've been a scientist. Maybe if she grew up with Pike, she would've joined Starfleet sooner with a different focus. She never felt like she belonged anywhere because she never did, at least, not until this moment. She felt like she belonged here, she felt safe and loved and at home. She didn't need to say it but she knew that Sam, Bones and Aurelan understood; they were her family.


	18. She Loves You More Than She Loves Me

"She loves you more than she loves me." Jamie just rolled her eyes at Bones statement.

Leaving Sam and his –their- family was harder than she thought it would be. After a lot of hugs, tears and promises to visit on both sides, Jamie and Bones boarded the shuttle to earth. Sulu was staying, he told Bones that his offer for pilot lessons still stood. When they got back to earth, they didn't expect Mama Ella to be waiting with Fred at the port in Atlanta; the older woman hugged Jamie before she even got to say hello.

"That's not true, child. I've loved you since before you were born and I'll love you until I die. You've gotten more hugs from me, you can share with Jamie and wait a second." Jamie laughed as Mama Ella released her and pulled her son into a hug, "Welcome home, Leo."

"Hello, mama. Missed you," Bones said, giving his mom a kiss on the cheek. After a few more hugs and hellos, they hopped into Fred's hovercar and heading for home.

"How was Ganjitsu?" Fred asked them from the driver's seat.

Bones looked at Jamie and smiled, "It was good. Hung out with Jim's brother and his family. His older son, Peter is smart and energetic, takes after his aunt. Alexander is the calmest baby I've ever seen. Got a tour from Sulu, he's another cadet, his mom works with Sam. Overall, it was good, relaxing." Jamie played with the Ole' Miss ring on his pinky as he spoke, it was one of the few things that Jocelyn didn't get her hands on. Bones turned his hand so that he could hold hers and sent Jamie a wink. Jamie loved to see him like this, happy and playful; it made him seem more his age.

Just like the last time they were here, Joanna met them outside while her aunt watched from the porch. "Daddy! Aunt Jamie!" Jo came running down the walkway and jumped right into Bones' arms.

"Hey, baby girl." Bones held her for a few moments before putting her on her feet, she hugged Jamie next.

"Hey, sweetie. What's up?"Jamie asked. Joanna grabbed Jamie's hand and started talking, Jamie wasn't sure how she kept up with her. Bones laughed at the perplexed look on her face.

"Now you know how I feel when you start talking about engineering." Jamie chuckled as she wrapped her free arm around his waist, his mother just smiled at them.

"I knew it," his mother exclaimed. 

"Knew what, mama?" He grinned at his mother, she told him at Christmas that she could see the pair together, but he shook his head, " _we're just friends, mama_." He told her that they were together the last time he comm'ed but she thought he was joking around.

"I knew that you two would look good together," Mama Ella told him. Jamie thought she heard his dad whisper something about Jamie being an upgrade from the evil bitch, earning a laugh from Fred and Donna. The McCoy's –everyone but Joanna- let them get settled, Jo followed her dad around, not that he minded one bit.

They were sitting on the porch with Mama Ella when David got comm'ed to the clinic for an emergency, "Wanna come with me, son?" Bones thought about it for a second, Jamie could see him weighing his options, it was written on his handsome face.

"Go with your dad. Your favorite girls will hang out," she told him. Bones looked as Mama Ella, Donna and Joanna agreed with Jamie.

"Take Fred with you," Donna added as an afterthought. Bones kissed his mom and sister on the cheek, his daughter on her forehead and Jamie on the lips.

"Stay outta trouble, ladies," he said to the group as he followed his father to the hovercar.

As soon as the men were gone and they got Joanna distracted, Donna looked at her, "Spill it, sweetheart, they won't be gone long, knowing daddy and Leo."

Jamie chuckled; Bones warned her that his sister was going to ask questions, " _You met her as my friend but you're not just my friend anymore_." After Jocelyn, she could understand why Donna would be leery. The McCoy's issue with Jocelyn was that the woman was family, her parents were in the same circles as Ella and David, Donna was friends with her for years, and they all felt betrayed when Jocelyn cheated on Bones. She didn't just destroy their marriage, she hurt the whole family. Donna wasn't letting something like that happen to her family again.

"I guess it is my turn since my brother had his go at Bones already. I love him." Donna and Mama Ella just looked at her; Donna motioned with her hand for Jamie to give them more information. "I don't know what else to tell you, I've never done this before. I'm not Jocelyn, I would never do what she did, but I can't promise more than that. I love Leonard; I would kill for him or die for him in a heartbeat. That's all I got." Mama Ella nodded, what Jamie said must have been enough for her because she changed the subject to the strawberry social that was in a few days. Jamie smiled at the fact that they could be so advanced but some things from a world long gone still held true.

During the fall, everyone was around for the apples and during the summer, the strawberries. She got excited as Donna and Mama Ella filled her in. "We're entered in the pie contest. I added you to the list, so, if you want to bake with us, you can. There's also the shortcake eating contest, Fred does that one."

Joanna had joined them, "Don't forget the tart toss, Aunt Donna." She sat on Jamie's lap and told her stories about the last strawberry social. Joanna got her Uncle Fred in the face with a strawberry tart and Donna had holos.

"We should run away while we have the chance; they pulled out the holos," Bones stage whispered as the three men returned an hour and a half later.  The women had noticed the guys pull up to the house.

Donna looked at her brother, "You can run all you want, we're still gonna show all your baby holos to your girlfriend." He rolled his eyes and sat down next to Jamie. Donna continued, "I bet her brother had plenty."

"Nope. I think the only baby holos of me are the ones that press had after my father got killed and everybody has seen those." They all looked at her.

"So there aren't any holos of you growing up?" Donna asked with a shocked look on her face. Jamie thought about it, her grandfather didn't take many, neither did her mom or Frank and the holos from Tarsus were either missing or destroyed. "Earliest holo I have aside from the 'Kelvin Baby' stuff, I was fourteen."

Bones held her hand, "Pike?"

She nodded, "Yea, there are a few from his cabin. A few from school on Vulcan and one or two from school in Italy. I have plenty of the last year, but that's because Bones or Gaila took 'em."

A look crossed Donna's face, "Well, maybe we should take a whole bunch while you're here."


	19. You Look Delicious in Red

"You look delicious in red." Jamie raised an eyebrow at him.

"I always wear red, Bones."

He chuckled and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Big difference between that uniform and this dress, darlin'."

She didn't think it was anything special, Donna loaned her a red sundress with little white polka dots and Jamie added her white Converse sneakers. She was pretty sure that the dress was actually brought for her since it fit perfectly and she was smaller than Donna. It also didn't escape her notice that Joanna's dress was white with red polka dots and she was wearing red sneakers.

"I think they wanted me to match the family," she whispered against his lips before giving him a kiss. Donna's dress was similar to hers the dots were just bigger. Mama Ella's dress was white with red flowers. Bones, David and Fred were all wearing jeans, boots and different red and white button down shirts. Bones' shirt was red and white plaid with the sleeves rolled up, Fred's plaid was short-sleeved, red, white and black and David's was red, white and brown. She didn't see Mama Ella's sisters, Josephine and Anna Mae, but she was sure they matched, too. Bones looked the part of a good son of the south and Jamie thought it was very, very sexy.

He kissed her neck, "Well, think of it as acceptance. This place is still a little old school. When you get there, you'll see it. Mama is the oldest of the Holbrook family, there weren't any boys which is why mama still carries the name. Dad's family has always been the doctors around here; I guess you could say that our families have always been polite society and old money."

Jamie considered what he said, "Sounds like this place still has southern belles and debutante balls."

"It does. If you were born here, you would've done all that stuff a few years ago. Since you weren't, this is my family's version of introducing you to the society in these parts," Bones gave her a look like he was trying to get her to understand something.

"Your family didn't publicly acknowledge Jocelyn, did they?"she asked.

He shook his head, "Didn't need to. Jocelyn's family is on the same level as ours. She was fine until she disgraced the name; the Darnell's don't deal with her much anymore, outside of seeing Joanna. The Treadway's ignore her and Clay too, according to mama." What was he saying? He looked at her and smirked as realization dawned.

"They're pulling you off the market. They're telling everyone that you're taken?"

Bones smiled and nodded, "I know we didn't talk about it, and I'm not running to the altar, but if I ever got married again, it would be to you. By showing up with us, mama is making sure that you are viewed as a member of the family. My future wife, if we ever decide to get married." Misses Jamie McCoy had a nice ring to it but she wasn't going to let herself go down that road. Jamie blushed bright red and rested her forehead on his shoulder.

"You're such a sap, Bonesy," she muttered. He held her face in his hands and kissed her.

"Only with you. Come on, the strawberries await, darlin'."

* * *

The group split into two with Jamie, Bones, Donna, Fred and Joanna in Fred's hovercar and David, Ella, Josephine and Anna Mae in David's.

"Wow," Jamie couldn't believe her eyes, there were people and red everywhere, she could even smell strawberries in the air.

"This is just the beginning," Fred told her from the driver's seat.

They all walked into the strawberry social together, they stopped every few minutes for Ella to say hi to people and to introduce Jamie. She stuck with Bones and Donna as much as she could but there's no saying no to Mama Ella. Eventually, the women went over to the booth for the pie contest, Bones gave her a kiss and told her to have fun, he was going to take Joanna to play some games.

"Who is this lovely young lady, Ella?" Jamie turned around to find an older version of Jocelyn standing behind her.

Mama Ella looped her arm with Jamie's, "This is Jamie Kirk, she's with Leonard. Jamie, this is Marybeth Darnell, Jocelyn's mama."

Jamie nodded, "It's nice to meet you, Misses Darnell." Contrary to popular belief, she had manners, Hoshi made sure of it.

"I've never seen you around here, Miss Kirk. How do you know the McCoy family?"

"Leonard and I attend Starfleet Academy together. I'm studying to be a command officer with a secondary focus in engineering. We met at the shipyard in Riverside on the shuttle. I had to keep him calm."

Pike didn't put up a fight when she asked for a sub-focus, there were a few cadets who did every year, she, Gaila and Uhura took engineering classes together on top of their primary stuff.

"He still hates those things?"MaryBeth asked with a smile.

Jamie chuckled and nodded, "He's getting better, a pilot friend of ours offered to teach him how to fly. We figure that he'd feel better if he had some control over what's going on. He'll have his first lesson when break is over."

Marybeth laughed, "You'll have to send holos, that boy has never liked flying."

"Yes, ma'am." Jamie had a nice conversation with Marybeth; she was nothing like her daughter.

A little while later, the pie contest got underway. Jamie was so excited that the pie she made with Donna came in second place. Of course, Mama Ella and her sisters took first.

"Just like every year," Donna whispered to her. She found Bones and Joanna throwing tarts at some teenager while Fred was taking holos.

"Get in there, Jamie," Bones' brother-in-law told her with a nudge. Bones picked Joanna up with one arm and pulled Jamie close with the other, she looked at him and smiled as Fred captured the moment.

Jamie laughed when Donna poked her shoulder, "Damn supermodels."

Bones shook his head, "Not me."

His sister wasn't having it, "Yes, you and your daughter and your girlfriend. You look like supermodels. Brilliant supermodels at that."

Joanna looked at her aunt, "Etek a'le ashau du, toz'ot Donna. Did I say that right, Aunt Jamie?"

"Mostly," Jamie smiled. Donna, Bones and Fred all looked at the two of them. Jamie chuckled, "It's Vulcan, she said 'We still love you, Aunt Donna.' Her pronunciation is pretty good."

Donna looked at her then Joanna and back at her brother, "See what I mean? She's teaching Joanna Vulcan. Did you know she speaks Vulcan?"

"If memory serves, Jamie speaks Standard, English, Italian, French, Russian, Andorian, Romulan, Vulcan and a little Klingon. I forgot something, didn't I?" Bones asked her.

Jamie nodded, "Tellarite and Denobulan. I'm learning Orion slave tongue from Gaila and Japanese from Sulu. Uhura said she'd help with my Klingon."

Donna rolled her eyes, "Is there anything you can't do?"

"Well, I'm not a doctor. I'm also an orphan with parental and trust issues. That count?" Jamie offered.

"I guess," Donna said with a shrug. The two women burst into laughter; it only got worse when Fred chimed in.

"I think your girl is flirting with my wife," Fred whispered to Bones.

Her boyfriend shrugged, "Wouldn't be the first time. Jim flirts with everybody, but she always comes home with me."


	20. I Wanna Show You Something

"I wanna show you something." Bones grabbed her hand and pulled her from the couch.

"What the…?"

He chuckled, "Come on, it's a surprise." He led them out the back door and away from the house.

It was their last day in Georgia; tomorrow they were headed back to San Francisco to get ready for class. They –and Uhura, Braxim and Gaila- would officially be third year cadets, even though they were only in their second year due to their class credits. Pike told them to be ready because they were going to be on a bunch training cruises and field assignments with the rest of their class. She wasn't really ready to get back but she knew she couldn't stay.

After the strawberry social, Jamie got to spend a lot of time with Joanna. Bones almost spit coffee all over her one morning, Joanna asked them when –not if- they were getting married. Mama Ella laughed all day, the look on Bones' face was priceless. Donna and Fred asked the same question the next day and David asked the day after that. " _Either they really like me, or they really want you to get married again_." Bones glanced at her when she said that and replied that it was both, they wanted him to get married again but only if it's to her. " _They love you, Jim_." She smiled at that, they didn't have to like her at all but they loved her like she was family.

Jamie looked at Bones as they walked along the orchard; he was gorgeous. He tried to downplay it but the man was painfully attractive, and the accent only added to the hotness. He had his hair cut a few days ago and it drew attention to his jaw line and his eyes. He picked up some of the Georgia sun, it made his hazel eyes glow. He caught her looking at him.

"What?"

She chuckled, "Just looking at you. I'm allowed. Where are we going, Bonesy?"

He shook his head, "You will see in a few minutes."

They walked through some of the rows of apples and come upon an old barn, "This was the apple barn back when my mama was a kid, they built the newer one by the house when I was little. I don't know why they kept this one but me and Donna used to play over here all the time. It was good for just getting away from everyone."

They walked into the barn and Jamie looked around, this place was cleaner than she thought it would be. Bones climbed up to the hayloft and told her to follow. "This is my favorite spot on the whole property," he told her. Jamie sat in front of him with her back against his chest, "We're right on time. Watch." They looked out over the orchard as the sun set.

"Wow. That's just, wow," Jamie was at a loss for words. This wasn't the first sunset she's ever seen, but there was something about being here, at his home with him that made it so much better.

He kissed her neck and whispered in her ear, "I love you, Jim. I know we're going to be busy this year and I don't know if I'll get many chances to show you how much. I'm not a touchy-feely guy but I just want to make sure you know that I love you."

She smiled and turned to look at him, "I know you love me. I love you too." Jamie didn't know everything but that was one thing she knew with every fiber of her being.

Jamie turned so that she was sitting sideways and kissed him. Jamie doesn't know how she ended up straddling him but he held her against him while her fingers fisted in his shirt. He moved one of his hands under her shirt and ran his fingers along her side as he pulled it over her head. His other hand worked to free the button on her shorts.

"I like 'em but they gotta go, Jim." She chuckled and reluctantly stood, slowly sliding the shorts off. Bones groaned, she wasn't wearing anything under them. He closed his eyes for a second, "You are tryin' ta kill me, darlin'."

He kissed her hip and her stomach before he told her to move her leg, she raised an eyebrow but did as he asked. Bones locked eyes with her before he leaned forward and licked her. "Oh dear God," Jamie gasped and buried her fingers in his hair, trying to pull him closer. Then, he slipped his tongue inside and she felt like she could die. She closed her eyes and moaned his name; he was really good at this and she was so close. "Len," she groaned as he pulled away. He had worked his jeans and boxers off and she slid down onto him. Bones held her hips; his fingers gripped her tightly as he set the rhythm, which was slower than she wanted. His hands moved from her hips to her hair, tangled in the blonde strands, he pulled her down for a kiss.

She increased her speed as their tongues danced together. He pulled away and locked his eyes with hers, "Jim." His voice sent her over the edge and he followed. Bones rested his head against her chest, Jamie played with his hair, "I should've brought you up here sooner."

"Leo!" Damn, Donna had come looking for them; Jamie pulled on her shorts and looked for her shirt.

"Where the hell did my shirt go?" she whispered.

He handed her his. "Yea, Don?"

His sister had climbed up, "I haven't been up here in years, mayb… Oh, shit, I interrupted something." Donna couldn't contain her laughter, "I am so sorry, Leo. Mama is looking for you. Man, am I glad I didn't send Jo." She looked at Jamie, "Lose your shirt, happened to me before. Never did find it." Jamie couldn't help herself, she laughed, Bones looked at her.

"Could be worse, what if it was my brother instead of your sister? Donna's cool but Sam might kill you." Donna laughed and Bones smiled, she had a point and he knew it. They almost got caught at Sam's, how her brother and Aury found the privacy to get pregnant with Alexander while Peter is running around was a mystery to them.

"We better get back before more people join us up here," Donna suggested.  They made their way down and Donna handed her a shirt, "It was over there. My brother has quite the arm." Jamie gave Bones his shirt back and pulled hers over her head.

Bones took Jamie's hand and looked at his sister, "Not a word, Don."


	21. Someone Kill Me Now

"Someone kill me now," Bones muttered. Jamie chuckled and looked at him.

"It's not that bad, Bones." They were standing in the shuttle bay preparing to board a shuttle to the USS Republic for the next six weeks. They got back from their break and found themselves scheduled to go out on a training cruise. Jamie thought it would be cool to spend time on a ship, of course, she's not the one who's afraid of space. "You knew this was coming eventually, the good news is that you won't be alone. Me, Brax, Gaila, Glorak, Sulu and Uhura will be right here with you. Hell, this is Mitchell's fourth tour, his second on this ship; he was assigned to the Republic last year."

Jamie knew that Bones didn't like space or spaceships but he was determined not to get left behind. She was destined for a ship, maybe even her own command one day; he told her that he wanted to be with her when that happened.

"You'll be fine, doc," Sulu said from behind them. Pike caught her eye before they got on the shuttle; he was going with them as well.

"That's easy for you two to say, you're both crazy. Do you know the kinds of things that could happen to you out there?" he asked.

Jamie chuckled, "Yes, we do know. Me and Sulu both lived on colonies and Braxim's people had to escape their home. We know that it's not all fun and games up there. I know that more than most, I was born in space, remember." Whatever Bones was going say, he stopped himself and nodded.

"I still don't have to like it," he mumbled.

She smiled and touched his hand, "That's true, you don't have to like it. If it makes you feel better, I promise that I won't let anything bad happen to you."

He glanced at her, "Only a little better."

The group was split up and ordered to board the shuttles, after a few minutes they were in the air.

"Jim, look." Bones was actually looking out the window at the Starbase and the ships.

"That's awesome,"  she whispered as they looked at the ships. It didn't take long to get to the their home for the next month and a half. Pike assembled them in the shuttle bay as a man his age with captain's stripes on his sleeves walked into the room. The captains had a quick conversation before the man turned to the group of thirty- six third and fourth year cadets.

"I'm Captain Rollin Bannock. For those of you that I don't know, welcome. For those of you that I do know, welcome back. The next month and a half will have each of you training on this ship and learning from my crew in your respective areas of expertise. Piece of advice I give to everyone from the newest cadet to my first officer, Commander Andrade, is that there is always something else you can learn. Captain Pike has assured me that you represent the best of the academy, we will see. Your duty and berthing assignments have all been sent to you, the returning cadets will assist in getting everyone settled. Those who are assigned to Gamma shift will report tonight, the rest of you will report tomorrow. That is all, unless Pike has something for you, you're all dismissed." Everyone glanced at Pike who gave the okay to leave.

Gary walked over to their little crew, "You guys can come with me. I have a friend who works with the quartermaster, so we're all together in crew quarters." Jamie wondered how they all ended up together on the Republic, it turned out to be a mix of their GPA's and Pike asking Admiral Barnett, who took over as Commandant for Admiral Tullsey.

Jamie was bumped into from behind, " _I am sorry I bumped into you._ _I should have watched where I was going_." The boy said in Russian. He was right but didn't think it warranted an apology. Jamie recognized him as the Russian wonder kid and introduced herself.

" _It is alright. My name is Jamie, what's yours?_ " He flashed a bright smile at her question. She doubted that people understood him most of the time, his Russian accent was thick when he spoke Standard.

" _I am Pavel Chekov. You know Russian?_ "

She chuckled, "Yea, I know Russian, her too." She pointed at Uhura, who nodded and waved. "Guys, this is Pavel Chekov." She told him all their names as they stepped onto the turbolift to their quarters.

"Jim, how old is that kid?" Bones whispered in her ear.

"Fifteen."

* * *

Gary was a God. Lower ranking crew members ended up in rooms that held four people at a time. Crew quarters were also co-ed, being comfortable just meant getting roomed with people you know. Jamie, Bones, Brax and Glorak were in the same room, Uhura, Sulu, Gary and Gaila were in the room next door. Chekov was supposed to be in a room with three cadets that he didn't know. Jamie doesn't know how Gary talked the quartermaster into letting the kid stay in their room but that's exactly what he did. Not that it mattered, Gary would just sleep with Gaila anyway.

They all dumped their gear in the rooms. Jamie took off the top to her uniform and lay on the bed.

Glorak looked at her, "Are you going to stay here?"

Jamie nodded at her Tellarite friend, "I'm gonna take a nap before shift starts." Bones decided to stay with her, Glorak went with Gary, Gaila, and Chekov on a tour of the ship; Brax was already asleep.

"You could've gone with them. You don't have to work until tomorrow," she told her boyfriend.

He kissed her neck, "I'd rather stay." Jamie chuckled and snuggled into his chest after setting her alarm to wake her up an hour before shift. There were three shifts on a ship; Alpha was the 'day' shift, Beta was the 'evening' shift and Gamma was the 'night' shift. Bones, Glorak, Gaila and Chekov were all Beta. Jamie, Uhura, Sulu and Brax were all Gamma and Gary was the only one on Alpha but that's because he was ahead of them and the captain liked him.

* * *

Jamie and Braxim woke with the alarm, she wasn't surprised to find that Bones wasn't asleep; he was reading on his PADD. "Good read?"

He nodded, "You know that neural grafting project I want to start? This is just some research in that."

She nodded and smiled, "Such a smarty-pants. It's really sexy."

He rolled his eyes, "Don't you start with me, Jim. You don't have enough time to finish it. Get dressed." She kissed him, then hopped outta bed.

While on the ship, they all wore the standard duty uniform. She got up and pulled hers from her bag, Jamie looked at it before putting it on, a command gold uniform dress with sleeves and lieutenant stripes. Jamie, Braxim and Glorak all rated stripes for A.T.T. and Bones because he was already a doctor.

"You're a lucky guy, McCoy." Jamie looked at Brax and chuckled, this wasn't the first time she's changed clothes in the same room as him.

"I know I am. She looks good in gold. Then again, Jim always looks good."


	22. What the Hell Was That?

"What the hell was that?" Bones asked. Jamie was thinking the same thing.

The red alert was going and the ship was jolted, then nothing. Everything went dark. Jamie, Bones, Braxim, Uhura, Chekov and Sulu were all in the turbolift to meet Gaila and Glorak for lunch –or breakfast for Gamma shift- when the whole ship seemed to die. Chekov took his PADD and started to input some commands.

"Da ship iz dead, zhere iz no pover," the kid told her.

Jamie looked in his direction, "Life support?"

"It'z holding for nov. Vhat do ve do?" Chekov asked.

Training exercise or not? That is the question. They had been tossed into a series of mock –based on real- assignments since they got on the ship a month ago but this one seemed different. They were ordered to assist a disabled ship by fleet command days ago; Jamie figured that they just got there. If this was a training exercise, they should be ok but Jamie had doubts that crew of the Republic would do something this big, when the ship jolted again, Jamie made up her mind.

"We have to get out of here. Without power, being in a turbolift was a bad idea. There's an emergency hatch above our heads. Brax gimme a boost," she told the others before Jamie hopped up onto her friend's shoulders and released the hatch; she climbed out and felt around for the ladder that she knew was there. The Jefferies tubes were every few levels, they just needed to get to them.

One by one, they climbed out of the lift and followed Jamie up the shaft.

"How do you know where we're going, Kirk?" Uhura asked from right behind her.

She thought for a moment, "I study ships, it's a hobby."

The truth was that she used to want to build spaceships but Kodos killed that. Everything he did turned her into a soldier, she was still brilliant, but now she used it to fight. Pike asked if she wanted to give her input on the new Enterprise but she didn't give him an answer yet. Jamie had figured out where they were when backup power activated. Their group was between decks nine and ten; she stopped when the ship-wide intercom came to life.

"Crew of the USS Republic, I am your new captain, Theseus. Soon, you will all be removed from the ship, you are not to do anything other than what we tell you or we will kill you and the person next to you. That is all."

Jamie looked at Chekov, "Can you hide us from the sensors and find our other friends?" He nodded and hit some commands into his PADD.

"Glorak iz in engineering, Mitchell and Keptin Pike are on ze bridge, and Gaila iz in ze galley. Maybe zhis Zheseus iz not going to hurt us, da?" the kid was so cute that she didn't really want to break his heart.

"No, he's lying. You don't need to be a communications expert to figure that out and I'm a communications expert," Uhura uttered from next to her.

Jamie nodded her agreement, "We're gonna need to take back the bridge and engineering if we want to get the ship back." Jamie sized up the people she was with, Chekov was small but he was the smartest, Uhura's hand-to-hand was as sharp as her tongue, Jamie sparred with Sulu so she knew he could hold his own, Brax was on her A.T.T. team and Bones was Bones. "Brax, Uhura and Chekov get to engineering. I don't know who's involved, but Glorak will back you up. See if you can't get Gaila's help without drawing any attention to her. Lock the system down if you have to. Bones, Sulu and I will head up and take the bridge."

"How?" Bones looked at her, "The lifts are out."

Jamie nodded, "This tube goes up in another twelve meters or so that way, they can also take it to go down." They moved to leave but Chekov stopped them and asked for someone's communicator, Bones handed his over.

"Zhis vay, ve can talk to each other." The kid punched something in and handed it back.

She looked at her friends, "Stay together and stay safe."

Jamie, Bones and Sulu went as far as they could go in the tubes, she knew they were under the bridge. Jamie listened at this Theseus person as he ranted and raved about taking over the ship and getting a good price for the hundred and fifty people on-board, on top of the ship itself. She could see where the staff and Pike were sitting and from what she could tell, they were okay. Jamie counted six hostiles. She knew that they could in through the vent panels above them.

"What are we waiting for?" Sulu mouthed at her.

"Chekov to cut the power," she mouthed back. Jamie motioned for Bones to hang back. He rolled his eyes and nodded just as the power went out. Jamie and Sulu moved fast, taking out Theseus' team before they realized what was going on.

"Stand down or I'll kill him," Theseus said as he held a phaser to Pike's head.

She looked at Pike, who winked at her, "Lieutenant." The word wasn't even out of his mouth before she threw the knife that was usually hidden in her boot. It stabbed Theseus in the hand, he dropped his phaser and went down to his knees. Sulu grabbed him since he was the only one they didn't knock out.

"Bones, it's clear." He hopped out with communicator in hand, "Bring back the power, kid."

"You okay, sirs?" she asked as she started untying people and checking them over. Pike, Bannock and Andrade looked at her and each other.

"No damage, Miss Kirk," Bannock told her.

She moved past them and helped her friend up, "Mitch, you good."

He chuckled, "Got my ass kicked, Jamie, but yea I'm good." She and Sulu secured the hijackers while Captain Bannock assured the crew that the ship was safe, ordered a security team to the bridge and requested status updates from all section leaders.

* * *

Once everything got settled, Pike and Bannock showed up in their quarters.

"Cadet Mitchell you are senior but you were on the bridge, so, who is going to speak for this group?" Bannock asked.

Jamie stepped forward, "I will, sir."

The Republic's commanding officer looked at her, "Why didn't you stand down, Cadet?"

She took a breath, "It's within our mandate to resist capture, sir."

Bannock nodded, "That wasn't my question."

She glanced at Pike, "The whole thing felt wrong, sir. Cadet Uhura and I could hear his deception and the fact that backup power didn't activate immediately meant that someone tampered with the system. It's was the most tactical option to retake the ship as quickly as possible. Personally, sir, I went through something like this before and too many people died before I could act. I vowed to never let that happen again." Bannock looked at her and then Pike, who smiled.

"This was not a training exercise as many of the crew thought, you actually saved the ship and all one hundred and fifty-two people on board. Cadet Gaila, your supervisor was impressed at your ability to disable the virus in the computer system and your assistance to Cadets Uhura and Chekov in retaking it. The security team is angling to get their hands on Glorak and Braxim. McCoy, you patched a few of us up without any equipment, you're a one man emergency room. Sulu, I don't know if I want to watch you fly or fight but you excel at both. Miss Kirk, I knew your dad, only thing more impressive than his brain, were his instincts. A trait you've seemed to have improved upon, I can't wait to see what you'll do next. Good job. Get some rest, all of you, Captain's orders." Bannock nodded at Pike and left the room.

"You saved our lives, all of you. You should be proud of yourselves, I am proud of you." Pike looked at her when he said the last part, she nodded her acknowledgment. He put his hand on her shoulder before leaving the room.

Gaila looked at her, "Ok, spill."

Jamie looked at her green friend, "Spill what?"

"You always hint that something happened to you growing up but you never tell any of us what you mean. And Pike seems to keep a closer eye on you than he does anyone else," Uhura said from her spot on Jamie's bed.

Brax nodded, "They have a point. What are you hiding?"


	23. It Ain't Pretty, Kids

"It ain't pretty, kids," Bones mumbled. Jamie glanced at him; she knew this day would come. Bones continued, "I know what's going on but only because I'm her doctor."

"They need to know. Even if they don't, I'm done hiding from it. I wish Kelso was here so I could tell him too," she said with a sigh. They all looked at her. "This is how it's gonna go. I'm going to tell you what I was referring to, then you each get one question, after that, we don't talk about it anymore." Everyone nodded, "Okay… When I was eleven, I moved to Tarsus IV. I was thirteen when Kodos massacred the place. I am the person Starfleet refers to as J.T., leader of the Tarsus 9." They all looked at her and then they started talking at the same time.

Bones rolled his eyes, "One at a time, infants."

"Why were you on Tarsus?" Was Sulu's question.

"My aunt and uncle lived there. My mom is dead, not like it mattered, she didn't raise me anyway, but I'm not explaining that today. Next?" That one was easy.

Braxim looked at her, "Did you know which list you were on?"

Jamie nodded, "Keep. I was one of twenty kids on that list. I could've just kept quiet but that monster killed my aunt, my uncle, my cousin Tessa and Hoshi. I wasn't going to let him kill all the children too.. Seven of the T9 were on the kill list, hell, of the nineteen of us that Starfleet found, only four of us were on the keep list."

Uhura looked at her, "Why doesn't anyone know you were there?"

"The official answer is, and I'm quoting, 'Starfleet feels that it would be counter-productive for the general public to be aware that Jamie Kirk, also known as Jamie Davis, the daughter of the late Lieutenant Commanders George and Winona Kirk was present for the catastrophe on Tarsus IV. The young Miss Kirk would already have a difficult time re-acclimating to normal life without her parents, the presence of the press would only impede her progress. It is the decision of this board to redact her identity from the records and refer to her henceforth as J.T.' the truth is that they didn't want to look bad. You guys saw the big deal the press made on my birthday about me joining Starfleet. Can you imagine what would've happened if the fleet told them that the 'Kelvin Baby' was in that mess? Starfleet had enough on their plate without explaining that."

Glorak spoke next, "How did you keep yourself and the others alive?"

"I've always had to fend for myself, part of growing up without parents. Everybody thinks it was so damn easy, I'd like to see how they'd function without parents. Hoshi and my Uncle Jeff taught me a bunch of stuff too," She sighed.

Gaila looked at her, "Do you know where the others are?"

Jamie chuckled, "Every single one. Families won't let me talk to most of them but I know where they all are, how they did in school, and all that jazz." Jamie smiled when she thought about the message she got from Kevin during break. At six, he was the youngest kid she saved and was smarter than his aunt gave him credit for. Jamie wasn't allowed to contact him, but he managed to contact her to let her know that he joined the fleet; he was a first year at the Academy, Pike was also his advisor for the same reason the man was hers.

"How does Pike fit into all this?" Gary asked.

Jamie thought about it, "He was on the away team that found us kids. I recognized him from the vids, he did his dissertation on the Kelvin and talked to my mom one of the few times she was planet-side. He's lucky I did, because I almost slit his throat. After they got us on the ship, he kept an eye on us. Technically, he's my last legal guardian, not that I really lived with him. I didn't have a place to go when we got back, only options were a group home or for someone to take me. Since we couldn't find my brother, Pike took me. I stayed at his place for a little while before going to Vulcan for school. I didn't realize he kept track of me until he showed up in that bar in Riverside. He got a kick out of me flirting with you." She looked at Uhura, who rolled her eyes and smiled. Jamie smirked, "Gotta admit, I have good taste. Pavel, you have the last question, _kid_."

" _Are you alright_?" he asked in his native tongue. She smiled, he was such a sweetheart and she was seriously considering adopting the teen.

"Yea, Pavel. I'm alright. I have good days and bad days just like everyone else. I'm always wondering if I could've done more or acted sooner, I take comfort in the fact that I did _something_. You know that whole 'All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.' kind of thing." Jamie glanced at Bones; he got all his questions out when she told him months ago. She looked at her friends, "Well, now that we got that outta the way, I'm gonna get some chow." Jamie hopped up and left the room before anyone could say anything else.

* * *

She didn't bother looking where she was going and ended up in one of the Jefferies tubes, "I figured this is where you would be."

She looked over at him, "I told them."

He nodded, "I know, McCoy filled me in, you weren't in the galley when they showed up. You've been here for a few hours. He wanted to come look for you himself but he thought you'd need me more. You know, he's not as cantankerous as he likes people to think."

"You should see him with his daughter or my nephews, he actually smiles," Jamie said with a chuckle. Pike sat next to her and took her hand; they sat in silence for a while before he spoke.

"No one ever asked you to do the things you do, but if you didn't step up, more people would be dead. I know you think that you didn't do enough but it what makes you a hero, Jamie. I always wonder what I could've changed or done differently, and I got a lot more years on you."

"You think he'd be proud of me?" She didn't have to explain who she was talking about, "There are some days where I like to think maybe he would be but there are other days, most days, when I think he'd be disappointed that I'm the person who carries his legacy. Most people don't even realize that Sam exists."

Pike looked at her, "I never met the man, so I don't know what he'd think. I do know that your brother is proud of you, and so am I. And I know that your friends are worried about you."

"I should go find them."

He chuckled, "If I had to guess, they're still in crew quarters." Jamie and Pike headed back to her room, the whole group was sitting around when the pair walked in. Before Jamie could say anything, Gaila hugged her.

"Can't breathe Gai." The Orion loosened her grip but didn't let her go, Jamie looked over her shoulder at Bones, he chuckled and shook his head.

"Don't look at me, I'm not helping you."


	24. Go, So You Can Hurry Back

"Go, so you can hurry back."

Jamie chuckled at him, "I'll be back in no time. You won't even notice that I'm gone."

Their training cruise was over and they had been back on the ground for a few months. They were going on another one in February, until then, they had classes to take. Jamie was assigned to be Pike's teaching assistant this year and she agreed to work on the Enterprise.The ship gave her something to do while Bones worked on his neural grafting project, from what she could tell, he was making progress. Pike, Jamie, Uhura and Lieutenant Commander Spock were going to be in Riverside for a few days before everyone went on Winter –Christmas- Break. Uhura was working with the communications department on the comm relay system and Jamie would be working on the weapons systems, they were rooming together.

"I always notice, darlin'. Go, before I make you late, I'm running out of reasons not to pull that uniform off your body."

Jamie smiled and kissed him, "Time for me to go work on our next big adventure."

He rolled his eyes, "You really think we'll be on the Enterprise?"

She nodded as she walked out the door, "Awesome crew for an awesome ship."

* * *

She sat next to Uhura on the shuttle, "Well?"

Uhura looked at her, "Well what?" Jamie glanced at Spock and back at Uhura. The linguist shook her head and shrugged.

"Doesn't even notice." Jamie watched him for a few minutes, he was hard to read but not impossible. She saw his lip twitch, he noticed, but if Jamie had to guess, he was a stickler for regulations.

"Give it time, Ny," she whispered to her friend.

Jamie felt like she won the lottery when Uhura came to her on the Republic, " _You can call me_ _Nyota_." They sat down and Uhura explained that she thought that even though Jamie was smart, she didn't care about others and used her father's name to get what she wanted. Now that Jamie spilled about part of her childhood, Uhura knew that wasn't the case and felt bad that she made that kind of judgment without any real reason. They both glanced at the Vulcan sitting across from them; it was going to be a long three days.

They got to Riverside and after a quick change of clothes, both women got to work, Jamie found herself with Spock. "Do you see the issue, Cadet?"

She nodded, "Yes sir. We'll need to reroute this if we want it to maintain power levels. Permission to speak freely, sir?" They were both under a panel and he had grease on his face. He nodded.

"The person in charge dropped the ball. It's lucky that you and I are both proficient in engineering so that we can fix the issues we've found so far but, all of this shouldn't be necessary."

Jamie and Spock were working on the coding for the phaser banks and everything they've attempted to do required them to fix something else first. Taking out the first panel was annoying but this was getting ridiculous. Once or twice is normal, but they were at two dozen manual repairs and counting.

"I wonder if Uhura is having this issue too," she said to him. Spock reached for his communicator, comm'ed Uhura and asked that if she was having similar problems with the communications system.

"Yes sir, we are. It's like someone tossed the coding together and hoped it would work," Ny said over comm.

"Understood, Cadet. This issue appears to be greater than Cadet Kirk and I initially assessed as well. We will contact Captain Pike and select a new course of action based on our current observations." Uhura told him that her team would meet them in the yard manager's office. Jamie pulled herself from under the panel and followed Spock. They met Captain Pike at the bottom of the ramp.

"Jamie Kirk, as I live and breathe." It was a voice that she hadn't heard in a long time.

She turned and smiled, "Hi, Frank."

"What are you doing back in my neck of the woods, you hate Riverside?" he asked as he gave her a hug.

She smirked, "Working on the Enterprise. This is Lieutenant Commander Spock and you know Captain Pike. Commander, this is Frank, my former step-dad." He said hello to everyone before finding out what was going on as the small group headed to the yard manager's office.

He looked at the three of them, "The Project Manager for your ship is a real piece of work. He's fleet but only barely, I think he's avoided being kicked out by sheer luck. Name's Lieutenant Ramsey. If he can get it done fast and cheap, he'll do it. A few of us filed grievances but Starfleet always sided with him, maybe you'll have better luck, it's time the yard manager did something about that guy. I don't know how he thought nobody would notice something as major as the computer systems."

Jamie nodded, "That explains a lot. The system is a mess, my nephew has better coding skills and he's four."

Frank smiled, "So, little George is doing good?"

Pike chuckled, "He's not little anymore." Jamie pulled up a holo on her PADD of her with Sam, Aury and the boys, Bones took it during break.

"He's a research biologist, it's Doctor George Kirk now. His wife works in the lab too. Peter is four, my mini-me. Alexander will be one in May," she told her step-dad.

"What about you? You have a family, someone special?" She nodded and swiped to the next holo, it was her with Bones and Joanna in Georgia.

"Leonard and Joanna. She's not mine, before you ask, but I love her just the same. Len's fleet too, he's a surgeon."

Frank smiled, "You look happy, that's enough for me, kid." He nodded to the yard manager's office, "Here you guys are. Don't be a stranger, Jamie. You need anything else, let me know." He squeezed her shoulder and made his way back to the project he was working on.

"He looks a lot better than the last time I saw him," Pike said from next to her and she nodded.

"Well, he _was_ on a lot of pain medication."

Frank's injury was brutal and he self-medicated. He never took it out on her but he needed help and an eleven year old wasn't the person to help him. He looked good, better than she thought he would. Spock didn't say anything, Jamie followed his eye-line over to Uhura and the two officers she was working with. That girl was like honey to a bee.

"You aren't her teacher anymore," she whispered. Spock's eyes flickered to Jamie's. "Life is too short to wonder if you should've, could've or would've done something. And Nyota Uhura is not someone you wanna have regrets about. You should go for it... Sir."


	25. What's With the Hobgoblin?

"What's with the hobgoblin?" She nudged Bones and gave him a look.

Jamie had been working in the computer lab with Gaila and Spock on the solutions to the Enterprise's programming issues when Bones showed up to drag her home. Pike and Spock had convinced the yard manager that there was an issue with Ramsey and the man was suspended pending an investigation. In the mean time, the ship still had to be fixed and finished. Spock was asked to oversee everything and Pike was looking into letting him be the project manager, as it stood now, Spock commuting back and forth. They asked Jamie, Gaila and Uhura to assist getting the ship to where it was supposed to be. The three cadets wondered why other officers weren't offered the job but Pike assured them that they were the best people for it because they didn't worry about politics and they did their best because they loved their jobs.

"Hey now, Bonesy. Uhura likes him so be nice. He's not even here anymore, I think he finally asked her out," she told him.

Spock and Uhura, Uhura and Spock. The Vulcan must've taken what she said to him with some measure of seriousness because she spotted them sharing tea a few days ago. Spock was one lucky guy, there were a lot of people trying to get Uhura's attention; chief amongst them was Thanas, the Andorian they beat at the survival course. He was an arrogant ass and neither Jamie nor Uhura gave him the time of day. Gaila was civil with him but she made it clear that she wasn't interested either. Bones looked at her and smiled as she rattled on about her friend's admirers.

"Come on, darlin', let's go home and admire each other," he whispered in her ear.

* * *

The next day found Jamie sitting next to Gary on a shuttle headed to the Starfleet Academy Desert Survival Course, February rolled around quick. They had Christmas with the McCoy family and it was as interesting as all their other visits. People, food and gifts. Mama Ella made her cry when she handed Jamie a code on a little slip of paper. " _You have free reign of the house, even if Leo isn't here_." Getting her own code to the door was like being handed a key to the kingdom. Bones just smiled, " _Told you they love you_."

They went out there for her birthday too; Pike thought it was a good idea since they all knew that next year she wasn't going to be that lucky. It was now two days before Valentine's day and a week before their next training cruise. Jamie wasn't surprised when they found out that they weren't going to be together for this one. This cruise was a month long and set up on smaller ships, Jamie, Glorak and Braxim –Yea! Team Delta- were going on the USS Sawyer together, Bones was going with Uhura and Kelso on a medical ship called the USS Hope, a science ship called the USS Hawking was getting Gaila, Sulu and Chekov, and Gary wasn't going at all, he just got back.

"You ready to do this?" Gary asked from her left, Jamie nodded.

She was going to fill the first year cadets in on the race this year. Kevin was among the group, she warned him to be careful of the obstacles. She took a breath and jumped up onto a boulder, "Alright people, welcome to the Starfleet Academy Desert Survival Course. This is where we learn who's the best of your class and who everybody else is. Your mission is to be first to the finish line. There are no grades, no rewards and the only place that counts is first place." She held up the phaser, "On my mark. Two, one…" she pulled the trigger and watched them all bolt.

Jamie paid attention to everyone but she kept track of Kevin as best she could, it was a good thing too. He was towards the front of the pack when he slipped coming down the cliff, unlike the guy who fell during her race, he wasn't getting up.

"It's not as bad as it looks," the kid told her.

Jamie glared at him, "You really don't want me to respond to that, Kev." He rolled his eyes and tried to get back up, he couldn't.

He sighed, "Ok, it's bad." Jamie and Gary managed to get him to the medical shuttle and Bones took over. Jamie watched as the grumpy doctor patched her young friend up.

"It's broken, we'll have to fix it back at the academy. He'll be fine, Jim. Kid is as tough as you are." Bones was trying to make her feel better and it was working, if only a little.

"Talk to me, Jamie," Kevin said to her. She looked at him and asked what he wanted to talk about during the ride back. He got Bones to explain his neural grafting project. Griffin had put Bones' research up for a commendation and when he explained to them, she understood why. Jamie usually couldn't keep up with medical stuff but Bones had talked about this so much that she got most of it, it was pretty cool.

* * *

A week later, Kevin was walking normally again. He went with them to the shuttle bay before they left, "I'll be fine. It's not like you can stay anyway. Go learn some stuff."

Jamie hugged him, "Stay outta trouble while we're gone. If you need anything, Gary and Pike are still here. Love you, Kev."

He laughed, "Love you too, _mom_. Later Doc." He let her go, waved at Bones and headed to his next class.

"I'm not babying him am I?" She looked at Bones.

"A little, but he's 17 and after everything you guys went through, he gets it."

She nodded, "Well, I guess this is it."

Bones pulled her into his arms, "Yea, it is. Stay out of trouble."

She nodded and kissed him, "I will, I promise. Love you, Bones."

"I love you too, darlin'." He gave her another kiss and headed to his shuttle. Jamie wasn't too worried about Bones, Uhura and Kelso promised to keep an eye on him.

Each ship was getting six cadets, in addition to Jamie, Glorak and Braxim, they also had Panak, Carney and Jackson. How she ended up as the only woman in this group, she had no idea. The shuttle ride was uneventful; Jamie sat with Glorak the whole way.

He whispered to her while they were still in the shuttle bay, "Kirk, this place is tiny." Jamie nodded, the Sawyer was a survey ship, they did science and surveillance missions, there couldn't be more than forty people on this ship at any given time, there just wasn't enough room.

"Cadets, I'm Commander Cassidy, the Sawyer's XO and security chief. Captain Randolph will introduce herself when she gets a chance. So, let me be the first to welcome you. I'm sure you've all noticed that this ship isn't very big, our compliant is usually thirty crew members, there are only twenty-six people on this tour, including the six of you. I don't have to tell you that a lot of us have multiple duties around here, ship's too small for anything else. We have a planetary survey on deck and a scan of a few nebulae. Cadets Kirk and Braxim, you'll be working with Lieutenant Commander Pell, our second and tactical officer. Cadets Glorak and Jackson, you'll be with the Chief Engineer, Lieutenant Scott. Carney and Panak, our science officer is Lieutenant T'Pek and you'll be with her. The pairs I just named will also share quarters. I hope that isn't an issue, Cadet Kirk, you are the odd woman out."

"Fine with me, sir. Wouldn't be the first time I've roomed with Braxim," she smiled. Jamie and Brax practically lived together at this point, the only person she saw more of was Bones.

"Good, saves me the headache of finding you another room," Cassidy explained that most of officers went co-ed but it was always a toss-up when the cadets came aboard. He gave them a little more information before heading to the bridge.

"Let's hope it isn't like our last tour. I don't know if we can fight off more hijackers," Braxim said to her after Cassidy left them.

Carney's face lit up, "So, it is true, you guys stopped someone from taking the Republic? I thought that was a rumor." Jamie, Braxim and Glorak looked at each other.

The Xannon cadet answered his question, "It's true. Kirk went command on us, issued orders, retook the bridge and even stabbed the guy in the hand."

Jamie shrugged, "His own fault, he had a phaser to Pike's head. I just relieved him of it." Carney and Jackson looked at her with wonder in their eyes; Panak didn't seem to care either way. They all ended up getting commendations for 'going above and beyond the call of duty and saving the USS Republic and her crew.'

Everyone made it to their quarters and changed uniforms; since the ship was so small, there weren't any turbolifts. Because they got around on ladders, the women wore the unisex duty uniform with shorter boots. Jamie was glad she had been warned beforehand.

"Such a waste," Braxim said from his locker.

She looked at him, "What?"

He shrugged in a very human manner, "You have nice legs."


	26. Glad One of Us is Having Fun, Darlin'

"Glad one of us is having fun, darlin'," Len grumbled over the comm. They were only eleven days into the tour, so far the Sawyer scanned a nebula and they just arrived at the planet Tzenketh to assist the Tzentethi with a planetary anomaly that they couldn't figure out.

"Thought you'd like being on a medical ship, I mean it's a big hospital."

She could hear him roll his eyes, "Exactly. I love my work but not that much. Uhura and Kelso hate it as much as I do." Jamie chuckled, having communication and navigation officers was vital on every ship, she could understand their feelings. So far, the Sawyer hasn't done anything but research, she thought it was cool but she wasn't exactly a normal tactical officer.

"Well, there's only one doctor and one nurse on this ship," she told him. The Hope was big but there were less than 100 crew members because the space was for patients and medical research, the Sawyer didn't have the luxury.

"That's just great, you'll get yourself killed faster." She smiled, he really wasn't happy.

"Hey, Bones?"

"Yea," he said after taking a breath.

"I love you."

There was a momentary pause, "I love you too, darlin'. I gotta go, I have a shift. Stay outta trouble."

She smiled, "Always do." He cut the communication from his end. Jamie had a few hours before she needed to report to the bridge, she decided to bother Glorak.

"You got it, laddie. We'll make a fine officer of you, yet," a guy in a red shirt told her friend. Jamie looked at Glorak and chuckled, he wasn't happy, not that he's ever happy. "Are you here to watch or are you gonna help, lass?" Jamie looked at the officer talking to her friend; he was now facing her.

"I have some time before my shift, sir, I can help." He nodded and gave her a task.

* * *

She made it to the bridge with five minutes to spare. When she got there, she was informed that she was going on the away mission; Cassidy did say they'd all have to step up. The anomaly was in one of Tzenteth's massive oceans. Jamie didn't mind going on the mission, walking around in the skintight, gold wetsuit was interesting though. Braxim even took a holo

"I'm sending that to McCoy," he told her. She rolled her eyes but didn't argue, Braxim was taking holos of most stuff.

Jamie was sure that this was the most uneventful mission that anyone had ever gone on. The issue was coming from an underwater cave; the team dove down and found that the anomaly was actually a primitive life-form living in the caves. She had no clue how nobody ever noticed the cute animals but she wasn't going to say that. After getting back to the ship and taking a shower, Jamie went back to engineering. She spent all her free time down there for the rest of the training cruise; Lieutenant Scott was just her type of crazy. The engineer was about to be promoted to Lieutenant Commander and was weighing his options on orders, he about fell in love when she told him about her work on the Enterprise.

"That ship is one well endowed lady. I'd like to get my hands on her ample nacelles, if you'd pardon the engineering parlance," he said to her. She laughed and told him to go for it, relaying the information about Ramsey fucking the whole thing up and was being demoted. Spock was good but he was also busy, even by Vulcan standards.

"I can drop your name by Pike, he's got a list of potential project managers, but he'll look at your record, if he hasn't already." Pike was looking at the best engineers in the fleet, Spock couldn't keep running back and forth between Riverside and San Francisco, there weren't enough hours in the day for all the things he had under his belt. She sent a message to Pike a few days before they got back to earth to let him know about Scott, " _He's on my list. I haven't gotten that far down yet, but I'll look_ ," he told her.

* * *

"Welcome back, everyone," Jamie looked at Pike, she had no idea why he was here, but it was good to see him. The Sawyer was the second ship back, the Hope and Hawking would both be in later that day. After Pike told her to stop by his office the next day and said hi to the captain of the Sawyer before he went looking for Scotty. Jamie smiled when she saw the look on her new friend's face.

"Kirk!" the Scot called. She jumped at the sound of his voice.

"You got it?"

He nodded at her, "Yea, lass. What did you do?"

She shrugged and shook her head, "Nothing that I know of." Other than telling Pike to have a look, she didn't do anything.

"Drinks are on me, tomorrow night, I'll send you the location. Pike says you got a boyfriend, bring him and the other cadets working on the ship," she wanted to argue with him but he insisted.

After a stop at the market, Jamie went home, the apartment seemed empty without Bones in it. She dropped her bag by the door, put the food away and walked into their bedroom. Jamie took a quick shower, pulled Bones' old Ole Miss t-shirt on and went to bed.

* * *

"Jim," Bones whispered in her ear, "wake up, darlin'." She slowly opened her eyes find the moon glowing in the sky; it was dark outside and Bones hadn't turned on the lights.

"Hey. When did you get back?"

He chuckled, "Hey, yourself. About an hour ago." He gave her a quick kiss; Jamie noticed that he was still in uniform.

"Why are you still wearing this, Bones?" she opened the jacket and slid it off his shoulders.

"Wanted to kiss my girl first, missed you. Since you're undressing me, I think I made the right choice." Jamie had pulled the undershirt over his head and moved to unfasten his pants. He kicked them off along with his boxers and shoes, "I got your holos." Braxim wasn't kidding, he took a bunch of holos during the tour and sent Bones all the ones he had with her in them. "I don't know if I like you running around in that damn wetsuit." He hovered over her, his hands caressing her legs.

"You're just mad that you missed it."

He smirked, "That too." He kissed her neck and nipped her ear. "I think this shirt looks a lot better on you then it does on me, darlin'." She chuckled as he pulled it over her head and didn't even flinch at the fact that she wasn't wearing anything under it. "Why am I not surprised?"

"I didn't see the point. You rip 'em when you can't get 'em off fast enough," she said as she leaned in to kiss him.

He broke the kiss too soon for her liking. "I replace 'em, though." Before she could say anything, his mouth closed over her nipple.

"Oh God."

He chuckled against her skin, "Givin' me a new nickname, darlin'?" She didn't answer him and he didn't say anything else as he went back to what he was doing. He switched to the other side.

"Bones." He didn't stop, he looked up and her eyes locked with his. Everything in her brain disappeared at the look he sent her way. "Bones." He smirked and moved to kiss her collarbone and her neck before he kissed her lips. Jamie's breath caught in her throat when he slid into her hard and fast.

"Oh God," she heard him mumble.

"Guess it's my new nickname, too." Bones moved slowly, and because her nerves were standing on end, she could feel everything. "Len," his eyes found hers in the dark, she could read the love all over his face and she lost herself in the feel of him. He tangled one hand in her hair and gripped her hip with the other as he moved faster, pushing her closer and closer to the edge. Jamie kissed any part of him that could reach before she kissed his lips. She knew that she wasn't gonna last much longer, he knew it too. He kissed her neck and moved faster, his control was slipping, "Len." She felt like someone lit a fire along her skin, it didn't take long for him to send her over the edge, he was right behind her. Bones moved so that he wasn't on top of her and pulled Jamie into his arms.

"Hi," he whispered.

She chuckled, "Hi. So, ya missed me, huh?"

He chuckled against her neck, "Yep."

Jamie smiled, "Missed you too."


	27. This Is Crazy

"This is crazy," Bones groaned. For once, Jamie actually agreed with that statement. They were supposed to be getting ready to go home on break but they weren't, Jamie, Bones, Braxim, Chekov, Gaila, Glorak, Kelso, Sulu and Uhura were all called into the Commandant's office a week before break started. The group was shocked to see Admiral Barnett was joined by Admirals Archer, Reed and a Vulcan lieutenant commander that none of them knew. Also in the room were Pike, Spock and Scott. The cadets entered the room and stood in two rows at the position of attention.

"At ease, cadets," Barnett told them from his deck, they all shifted to the more relaxed stance and waited for him to speak. He looked at Pike, "This is everyone from the Republic?"

Pike nodded, "Almost, sir. Lieutenant Mitchell graduated last week and is on leave. Cadet Kelso is standing in his place; I think he'll be a good addition."

"Cadets," Barnett began, "Most of you know Lieutenant Commanders Spock and Scott. This," he gestured to the female Vulcan, "is Lieutenant Commander T'Prynn with Starfleet Intelligence, she's going to brief you on why you're here." They all watched as T'Prynn stepped forward, entered a command into her PADD and showed them a diagram of space near the Romulan neutral zone.

Jamie noticed a flicker, "Is that a ship, ma'am."

The lieutenant commander looked at her, "Yes, the Romulans have been developing an advanced cloaking device, Starfleet needs to acquire it before it is reproduced."

"You need us to steal it?" Jamie had figured out the mission in the middle of her explanation, if the Romulans got that thing produced for other ships, the Federation would swiftly lose a war with then and the Klingons would kill anything the Romulans left behind.

Archer nodded, "You need to get your hands on it, and fast." Bones had been holding his tongue but she knew it wasn't going to last long.

"Aren't there better people for this? Good God, man, we're cadets… sir," Bones said before shutting his mouth.

Archer smiled, "I like you, you remind me of Trip. Must be a southern thing." Commander Charles 'Trip' Tucker III was the chief engineer on the Enterprise NX-01; he was killed in the line of duty. According to the stories that Hoshi told her, Trip was also Archer's best friend and the person who called him on his bullshit. Hoshi liked to say, " _Trip kept Archer honest_."

Jamie smirked and whispered, "That's one hell of a compliment, Bones."

"It is. Hoshi told you about Trip?" Archer asked her.

She nodded, "Yes sir. He was a good officer and she loved that she never knew what he was gonna say. Said he was practically your brother." Hoshi did a bit more than just talk about the engineer but she couldn't tell Archer that.

Archer smiled a fond smile, "Very much so." He looked over the whole group, "This mission is important, and while, in some ways it would make more sense to put together a specialized team of officers, there isn't enough time. You all have the necessary skills, you work well together, and well under pressure. Your performance on the Republic showed that." He paused, "Each year, there is a group of select cadets chosen for a special team. These teams are made up of cadets from different tracks and they carry out missions in addition to their classes and are granted provisional ranks while carrying out those duties. Based on your performances in the classroom, on training cruises and the recommendations by your instructors and advisors for the class of '58's team, you are officially being designated Cadet Training Squad Nineteen, codename: Blue Squad." Of all the things that Archer could've said, that wasn't what they expected. With graduation a week ago, they were the senior cadets. Most fourth years went out on ships when they weren't in certain classes, there were some they could take over the communication system.

Barnett smirked at the looks that she was sure showed on their faces, "You need to select a team captain." Jamie was thinking Uhura would be good in that position, maybe Glorak, she was shocked when Uhura spoke from next to her.

"Cadet Kirk was the leader on the Republic, instrumental in the pursuit of the Nanite Killer and the captain of her Advanced Tactical Training team, she would be best suited to leading Blue Squad," the communications cadet told the officers.

"I don't kn…" the others agreeing with Uhura cut her off. Jamie looked at Bones and raised an eyebrow when he nodded his agreement.

Archer laughed, "Well, that was easy. Kirk, your team has spoken." She took a breath, it was an honor and a huge responsibility.

"Yes, sir. I'll do my best. Our orders, transport, time-frame and rules of engagement, sir?"

Pike handed her a PADD, "Your team will be joining myself and Lieutenant Commanders Spock and Scott. You will be acting as my first officer, McCoy will be medical, Uhura will be communications and so forth. This mission is following covert operations protocol, we only engage if there is no other option. We are wearing blacks; leave your standard duty uniforms here. Shuttle twenty-three leaves in two hours and you all better be on it; tell no one where you are going. Hopefully, we'll be back to get you all a break before the next semester starts. Unless you have any questions, you're dismissed." They all nodded, and filed out of the room, everyone except Jamie.

"You aren't telling us something sir," she said to Archer.

Reed stood, "That wasn't a question but I'll take it. The cloaking device appears to be derived from one the NX-01 saw years ago."

Jamie nodded, "The configuration suggests Suliban."

"How much did Hoshi tell you about them?" Reed asked.

She thought about it for a second, "Not much, sir. They're from the Beta quadrant, and were part of a temporal cold war but she wouldn't tell me more. I can speak a little Suliban but it's not in my file. You think they're involved?"

Reed looked at her, "We aren't sure yet. Keep your eyes open."

She smiled, "Always do sir. Hoshi taught me well." Reed and Archer both chuckled, and Reed spoke.

"You know, Kirk, she learned it from us," the Brit said.

Jamie laughed, "She said that you would say that, sir." They chuckled and dismissed her, Jamie left to find that her team was still there, Uhura was quick to the point.

"What did they leave out?" the other woman asked.

"Just to keep our eyes out for a species they encountered almost a hundred years ago. I'll explain more if their suspicions turn into something." They all nodded and headed off to pack.

Bones took a breath, "Like I said, crazy."


	28. Could This Ship Be Any Smaller?

"Could this ship be any smaller?" Bones asked. They were all in the tiny cargo bay. Jamie, Sulu, Kelso, Chekov, Scott, Glorak and Braxim all looked at each other.

"Talon," the command and engineering officers said at the same time. Bones, Gaila and Uhura looked at them, Jamie elaborated.

"This is the Bowman, it's an Archer-class scout ship that can land on a planet. While there's no doubt that it is small, there is living space for eighteen. Now, the Talon-class scout ships are only a little bigger than a shuttle, and only has living space for two, barely. Eleven people is its top capacity but not for a long time. Officially, this ship is assigned to the academy for training. Unofficially, it's Starfleet Intelligence." Bones looked like his eyes were gonna pop out of his head. Jamie told him about the Sawyer being small but the Bowman was half its size.

"Don't worry, McCoy. If this thing goes south, it won't matter what ship we're on. The Romulans will kill us anyway."

Jamie closed her eye for a second before she looked at Kelso. "You aren't helping here, Lee."

"It's not that bad, laddie. At least medical is the second biggest room on the ship, engineering and the cargo bay are the only thing bigger. The ship is small but she's fast, warp nine capable and she's armed. We got our fair share of good pilots around here, too," Scott, or Scotty as he instructed her to call him, said from behind her. She looked at Bones, that seemed to help his anxiety a little.

There were three decks on this ship, deck one was the top part of engineering, which was also part of decks two and three. The second deck was the main part of the ship. In addition to part of engineering, this was where the bridge was situated. The bridge was in the front of the ship and dead center, CO's room was on one side, XO's room on the other. Next to Pike's room was the bathroom/showers, half the crew quarters, the emergency escape pod and the galley. On the other side, there was Jamie's –and Bones'- room, the lab, the other crew quarters, the airlock and medical. The third deck was the bottom of engineering and the cargo bay.

"How are we doing quarters?" Kelso asked. It was one of the jobs that Pike gave her, fortunately, they had more beds than people.

"Spock is in alpha, Uhura is in bravo, Sulu and Chekov are in charlie, Kelso is in delta, Scott is in echo, Gaila is in foxtrot, Glorak is in gulf, Brax is in hotel, Bones is with me in XO quarters and the captain has CO quarters. We'll be in three shifts until we get to our destination. We'll all have additional duties in on top of shifts on the bridge. Alpha shift is Pike, Sulu and Glorak. Beta shift is me, Brax, and Scott. Gamma is Spock, Chekov, and Kelso. Bones, you're on call and medical is your responsibility. Gaila, you'll work out of the lab. Uhura, you have a station on the bridge but you won't be manning it the whole trip, since we'll be in comms blackout most of the time, you'll help in engineering." Everyone nodded, Jamie did her best to even them out and put everyone where they needed to go.

"Sounds good Lieutenant Commander Kirk," she knew Pike was there, ship was too small not to notice. The admirals really weren't kidding when they told them that they had provisional ranks, Jamie thought she was a lieutenant until she took a glance at her file, apparently she and Bones were graduating as lieutenant commanders. She asked Pike how and it boiled down to Bones already being a doctor and her promotion was recommended by the Republic's CO, the yard manager in Riverside and the Sawyer's XO, the Admirals decided to approve it since she was Blue Squad's leader.

"Time to go, sir?"

Pike nodded at her, "It is. Alpha, duty stations. The rest of you, get settled, we got a long trip."

Everyone went their separate ways and no sooner did the door to their room close, did Bones start talking, "I can't believe this. We aren't trained for stuff like this."

"Actually, we are. Brax, Glorak, Sulu, and me are all A.T.T. rated. Gaila escaped the Orion slave trade, she and Ny are both more dangerous than they let on. Only person on the ship that I even remotely worry about it Pavel, he's not as tough as the rest of us but he is smarter. And you don't give yourself enough credit." He turned and glared at her, she smiled, "Bones, I saw the holo-vid from when Viktor attacked you. There aren't a lot of people who can hold their own against four people with advanced training."

He rolled his eyes, "I got my ass kicked, Jim."

"You fought back, it could've been a lot worse." Jamie hated to think about what would've happened if he didn't defend himself. Most doctors stuck to that 'do no harm' thing, Bones only stuck to it as long as you didn't attack him or his family and friends, like any good southern boy. Jamie thought, a few times, that he would make for a terrifying enemy. Bones is such a natural doctor, he doesn't rely on his equipment to figure things out and he knows the anatomy for a few species by memory. If he ever switched sides, she would be scared for anyone who pissed him off, the ways he could kill them are endless.

"Are you listening to me, Jim?"

She shook her head, "Nope. To busy thinking that you should give me an anatomy lesson." Whatever he was about to say, he stopped himself and smirked.

"Is that so, darlin'?" She nodded and smiled. Bones stepped closer to her, he put his hand on her hips, "I might be persuaded to teach you a few things, darlin'." Jamie loved when his voice dropped a register, his accent got thicker. Bones watched her for a second, he knew the affect he had on her, then he kissed her.

"Bridge to Kirk," the intercom came alive just as Bones moved to pull her shirt off.

"Kirk here," she replied as she touched her forehead to Bones' shoulder. He kissed her neck and drew circles on her hips with his fingers, it was driving her insane.

"Captain wants you to gather everyone for the briefing," she heard her pilot friend say.

"Thanks Sulu. Kirk out."

Bones kissed her as soon as the line closed, "Guess we got work to do, but don't think this is over, darlin'."


	29. How the Hell Are We Gonna Do That?

"How the hell are we gonna do that?" Bones asked after Jamie and Pike had laid out the plan to everybody in the galley/conference room; Sulu and Glorak were listening from the bridge.

"We can't tell you, Bones," she told him. He rolled his eyes at her and stood up, she put her hand up to stop him from saying anything, "Those are our orders. I know you don't like them, I knew you wouldn't like 'em when we got 'em but there's nothing you can say that'll change them. You're just gonna have to trust me, Leonard."

No one ever, _ever_ , hears her use his name, the only time she does is when something is very wrong, she's trying to stress the seriousness of a situation or when they're in bed and they don't have witnesses for that. The use of his name had the desired effect, he didn't say anything else, just nodded and sat down. Jamie knew he wasn't done, just that he would wait until they were alone before he broached the subject again.

Pike got their orders right before they left and, just as Jamie thought in the meeting, the mission parameters had changed. The captain let her know what was going on but waited to tell everyone else until they were at warp. The last few hours have been a crazy ride and they weren't even close to done yet. Uhura had done research into the cadet training squads and learned that Starfleet didn't put the group together every year. They just did it when there were cadets who were so far ahead of their peers, it seemed a waste not to use their skills. Jamie knew that she and Sulu were on fleet intel and Section 31's lists of people to watch. Pike warned her that once people started to see what she could do, there were going to be different departments trying to get their hands on her. So far, Archer and Reed were keeping certain groups at bay, Section 31 especially. Uhura was on the list for plenty of ships and cryptography wanted her to work for them. The one that made her smile was Bones, for all his grumbling, he was such a good doctor and HQ wanted him to stick around after he graduated.

"Vhat iz a… Zuliban?" Chekov asked.

Pike looked at Jamie, "All yours, Kirk." She nodded and recalled everything she's ever read or been told about them.

"Officially, the Suliban are a nomadic, warp-capable, humanoid species. Their homeworld has been uninhabitable since the 1850's. Back when Archer first took the NX-01 out into the black, the Suliban were involved in their first mission. At the time, the Suliban had a group, the Cabal, that were the foot soldiers in what is now considered the Temporal Cold War. They were attempting to shake up the Klingon Empire, but Archer stopped them from succeeding. The Suliban had a benefactor from the 28th century that aided them with genetic enhancements and cloaking technology in exchange for their service. Fleet intel believes that the cloaking device we're after isn't Romulan, but similar to the one that Enterprise examined from a Suliban vessel."

Uhura looked at her, "So, we aren't after the Romulans?"

Jamie shook her head, "I don't know. We'll get more intel in a few hours. I'm still hoping that it's the Romulans instead of the Suliban to be honest with you. When they were up against Archer, the Suliban Cabal sorta disappeared instead of losing the fight. The majority of the Suliban are fine but the Cabal is basically a bunch of terrorists. At least the Romulans have a code of honor." Everyone but Pike, Spock and Bones looked at her like she was crazy.

"They killed your father, Kirk," Kelso said to her.

She shrugged, "No, _some_ of them killed my father. I don't have to like them, and believe me, I don't, but you don't judge an entire group based on the actions of a few, I think humanity has learned that lesson a few times. There's nothing wrong with having respect for a formidable foe." Jamie didn't expect Spock to agree with her.

"She is correct. Many cultures believe that to win the battle, you must first respect your opponent." She smirked and pulled the meeting back onto topic.

"Thank you, Spock. Now, if the technology we're after is Suliban, it leaves us with two options, either they're back or someone wants us to thing they are," Jamie told the group.

"Why didn't Archer tell us this?" Gaila asked. Jamie and Pike looked at each other, the captain answered her.

"They did. Just not in so many words. You'll see," Pike said. Everyone took a moment to let it sink in.

Jamie took a breath, "There are ears everywhere, even in HQ. They gave us all the information we needed without actually telling us what they meant." Since there weren't anymore questions, Pike let them go, they were making a stop near a Federation outpost soon and he wanted them to be ready.

* * *

"The members of the away team needs to report to the cargo bay in five minutes," Sulu announced over the intercom. Bones didn't ask her what was going on, yet. The group entered the cargo bay as soon as the ship landed; they were taking the ground vehicle stored there. Jamie, Braxim, Bones, Pike and Uhura were going dirt-side.

"Kirk, you can drive," the captain told her. Jamie nodded at Pike, put on her sunglasses and hopped into the driver's seat.

"You know where we're going?" Bones asked from the seat behind her, Jamie nodded and pulled out of the cargo bay. They were on a small desert planetoid near Alpha Centauri. Jamie had been her once when she was between schools, there were only a few people who knew this outpost was here, scans of the planetoid made it appear uninhabitable.

They pulled up to a cliff-face and Jamie smirked as she drove right into it. "What the hell?" Braxim asked from behind Pike. Jamie parked and jumped out of the vehicle.

"Come on, guys." Everyone followed her as she walked through the room they found themselves in. The place was huge but there were only a dozen or so people in it. Bones looked around.

"What the hell is this place?" her boyfriend asked.

She looked at him, "This place doesn't exist, Bones. At least, not to the general public."

"How do you know about it?" Uhura asked as she took everything in.

"She knows the right people," came a voice from the walkway above them.

"Hey, everyone. I'm Jack. He's expecting you, so follow me."

Jamie smirked at the looks on their faces, Brax nudged her, "Who is this 'he' person?"

Jack laughed, "They don't know?"

Jamie chuckled and shook her head, "Nope."

The team was led into a dark office before Jack bid them farewell, "Here you guys go. See ya around."

Jamie smiled, "You know this mysterious thing you're doin' isn't you." She said to the figure on the other side of the dark room, she heard a huff before he ordered the lights to come up.

"I'm old, gotta have my fun. Look at you, all grown up."

She shrugged, "Happens. I couldn't stay that cute little girl with a crush on you forever. Especially after Kodos."

He nodded, "Sorry you got caught in that mess."

Jamie shook her head, "I'm not, made me who I am." He smiled at her and then looked at the others.

"Your friends look like they've seen a ghost."

"Technically," she said to her old friend.

"He's… but… how?..." Uhura was at a loss for words, Jamie should take a holo.

The man smiled at the linguist, "You know the old saying about tales of one's death being exaggerated. Aren't you gonna introduce me to your friends, Jamie?"

She smiled and nodded, "Captain Pike, Doctor McCoy, Lieutenants Braxim and Uhura, meet former Starfleet commander Charles 'Trip' Tucker."


	30. Holy Shit!

"Holy shit!" Jamie laughed at the look of shock on Bones' face as she moved to hug the engineer and Trip kissed her.

"You look good old man."

Trip chuckled, "I'm not that old, I'm 136 and I don't look a day over fifty, thank you very much." 

"You cheated though, you got help from some alien medical tech. You know you're gonna have to share that with me one day. I wanna look this good when I get older," she told him. He chuckled, nodded and looked at her friends.

"How hard was it not to tell them?"

Jamie shook her head, "We dropped hints, I think some of the others on the ship figured it out. Bones is gonna let me hear it later." Trip looked over her shoulder at Bones.

"I guess my dreams of fathering your children are out." Jamie laughed and rolled her eyes, only Trip would actually say that to her.

To the rest of the universe, Trip Tucker died a hundred years ago, the –very classified- reality was that he faked his death and went undercover to stop the Romulans from developing an advanced warp system. He was one the first humans to see Romulans first hand; and he reported back how similar they were to Vulcans. Starfleet kept that info under wraps for a while so that it didn't kill the coalition. Bones looked between them.

"How do you know a man who's supposed to be dead long before we were all born?" Bones asked. Jamie sighed but Trip spoke before she could.

"We met when she was five. I was visiting the Starfleet Memorial and saw this little girl sitting in front of the wall. She told me her dad was listed on it and she wondered if he really hated her like all the other kids said," Trip told the officers. Kids are mean, no matter where you are or what you do, they're just mean. Jamie never understood why people singled her out, at least back then she didn't. It was one thing to know your father and to have him shape your life and career but it's another to never even meet the man and be compared to him every single day. Jamie went to normal school for three months, between her sky-high aptitude and all the harassment, her grandfather pulled her out and let her go to school from home.

"You made some lame joke about Romulans and then you realized who I was. I still think it was hilarious," Jamie said.

Trip smirked, "I didn't tell her who I was then, but I think she figured it out because six years later, we saw each other again."

Jamie chuckled, "I was with Hoshi and he went to see her."

Trip glanced at her, "They know?" She nodded.

"Okay, I want the story behind that, J.T. Anyway, I hopped off the shuttle, walked to my friend's house and she's in the garden with this little slip of a girl, tending her azaleas and cursing in Klingon. Jamie would repeat after her and then they'd switch languages, it was impressive. She looked up at me and repeated my joke from the memorial, I knew who she was almost instantly." The group looked at her and then at Trip. "I was there for a while, she would follow me around and help me build or fix stuff. I'm the person to blame for her love of engineering. Her first degree was in math." Jamie smiled at the memories; she had a huge crush on him back then, even though he's more than a hundred years older than her. He's an attractive guy with an amazing brain and a good heart, she wasn't gonna apologize for liking him. "J.T., if I had only stayed another few weeks…"

"The crops would've still failed and Kodos would've dragged you out of Hoshi's house and shot you in the head like he did to her. I barely made it out alive and I only left because she made me promise to survive," she told him. The first time she talked to Tucker after Tarsus, he blamed himself for not being there to help her or Hoshi but Jamie shut him down every time, it wasn't his fault that he had a job to do. Jamie sighed, "Now that we've taken that wonderful trip down memory lane… Are we working for 31 or just with 31?"

Trip smiled, "With, I would cut off my arm before I let you join Section 31. You're here to help me stop a war from starting. I'm sure you've been briefed on the Romulans having an advanced cloaking device…" He waited for them to all confirm his statement, "Good. Except, it's not the Romulans, it's humans with Suliban tech. It's a group that calls themselves The Redux. From what we gathered, they're just a rehash of Terra Prime and it looks like they are itching for a fight."

Good old Terra Prime, Jamie often wondered how these people just don't die. For all their anti-alien rhetoric, they used a whole lot of alien tech. This Redux group seemed to be just as close-minded. Terra Prime was a xenophobic group that tried to get all non-humans out of the Sol system and away from earth. They went so far as to steal the DNA of Trip and T'Pol, the Vulcan science officer on the NX-01, and created a baby.

"What do they want?" Jamie asked Trip.

"We aren't entirely sure, just that they hate anything that's not human."

"What do you need us for, you have a team?" Bones asked from next to her.

Jamie knew the answer, "Fresh faces. You don't infiltrate a terrorist group with people they've seen before." Trip motioned for her to continue, "You want me to go in. My parentage makes me the perfect candidate to join a group like that and my skills would make me an asset. I'd be hiding in plain sight."

Trip smiled, "Man, if Hoshi could see you now. All that crap she gave me for teaching you tactical awareness."

She smirked at the memory of one of those lessons _, "Okay, open your eyes and tell me what you see." She looked around, "Trees, Trip, I see trees." He chuckled and shook his head, "Look beyond the trees. See the movement, smell the air, feel your surroundings and then tell me what you see." Jamie took a deep breath, "There's a bird over there." He nodded, "What else?" Jamie slowly looked around, "That movement over there is water. Wind is blowing the grass to the west. There's a bee on that flower." He smiled, "Not bad, J.T."_

"Are we talking about letting Jim go undercover with a terrorist group?" Bones asked.

Trip laughed, "I think you know her well enough to know that you can't stop her from doing the right thing." Bones looked at her like he wanted to strangle her.

"You can't be serious," Bones groaned.

Pike looked at him, "McCoy, this is the job. She told you that you weren't gonna like it."

"Understatement of the century, it's bad enough we were conscripted but this is ridiculous," Bones said.

It was Uhura who proved to be the voice of logic, "We could've said no, Leonard. I don't like it but Jamie has the perfect skill set for something like this, Sulu too."

Trip nodded, "They're recruiting from Alpha Centauri, you in?"

Jamie chuckled, "Oh come on, Trip, this is me you're talking too. You know good and damn well that you didn't have to ask."

Uhura nodded, "I'm in and I bet Sulu would say yes, too." Jamie thought about it and Uhura was right, Sulu was quiet but that didn't mean he wasn't dangerous. Braxim, Gaila, Spock and Glorak couldn't go because they weren't human; neither could Scotty because someone had to keep the ship in one peace and Kelso and Chekov didn't have the skill or the heart for something like this. Jamie had to assume that Pike was out too, he was a Federation hero, people knew what he looked like.

"I'm going too," Bones told them.

Jamie looked at him, "You sure? This isn't gonna be a cakewalk."

He nodded, "I'm going where you go. Who else is gonna make sure you don't get yourself killed?"


	31. So, That Was... Interesting

"So, that was... interesting," Bones said to her.

Jamie laughed, "I couldn't tell you, Trip's supposed to be dead, remember."

Bones looked at her as they got ready to leave, "That was some kiss, Jim."

Jamie rolled her eyes, "Yes, Bones, it was. You aren't jealous are you? You do realize that he's over a hundred years older than us?"

"He kissed you. What am I supposed to think?" He picked one hell of a day to be jealous.

Jamie could understand, his ex did cheat on him but she's not Jocelyn. Her relationship with the engineer was weird, mainly because only ten people knew he was alive before today. And she knew all about his work for Section 31, even though she isn't supposed to. Crazy thing is, that knowledge kept her alive in the end. Jamie's a natural tactician but Trip taught her a few things over the years that have kept her alive.

She took a breath, "Bones, I love Trip, but aside from being a big flirt, he's more like my uncle than anything else." Bones was about to say something but she stopped him, "You have no idea what it was like growing up. I couldn't go to school, my mom wasn't around, Sam and Frank were always fighting with each other before Sam ran away, then I ended up on Tarsus and I thought I wasn't worth anything. What would you think if everyone keep leaving you or passing you along to the next person? That man… That man never turned his back on me, he made me believe in myself and big part of who I am is because of him. You don't have to get it, or like it but he's as much a part of me as you and Pike are. He asked for my help and I'm going to help him, you do what you want."

"Are you ever going to tell me the whole story about Tarsus?" It was a fair question but Jamie never intended to fill him about everything.

"No, there are some things that I wouldn't share with my worst enemy." She knew the next question before he asked it, "and no, Trip and Pike don't know the whole story about those three months, either. The things I had to do to keep those kids alive... I will take to my grave." Trip taught her a long time ago to use what you have but on Tarsus, there wasn't much at her disposal. Jamie did things that most grown women wouldn't have done to keep those kids fed. She wasn't going to think about it, she was just gonna do what she needed to do. She looked at Bones, "Are we really fighting about this?" He didn't look at her for a moment.

"No. We got a job to do," Bones said with a sigh.

* * *

A few days later they found themselves walking down the dark alley. "What are you doing?"

Jamie smirked and kissed his neck, "We're being followed."

After getting everything from Trip, including an edit on their personal records, the group of four set out to Alpha Centauri on different ships and shuttles. Before they left the bar, Jamie noticed that she and Bones were being watched; they got The Redux's attention. "Play along," she whispered in his ear before she pushed him against a wall and kissed him. Bones chuckled before he changed their positions and pinned her on the wall.

"You're playing with fire, darlin'," he said against her lips. She smirked and pulled the phaser from his waistband and pointed it at the men she noticed.

"You have two seconds to tell me why you're following us before I end your existence," her voice went from flirty and warm to ice cold in a split second. The three men looked at her and Bones.

"We've been watching you," the leader told her.

"So, I should shoot you anyway?" she asked. Jamie wasn't gonna make it easy.

"We're part of a group, we think the two of you might be an interesting fit." He handed her an address on a piece of paper, "Tomorrow night, 1800. Don't be late." Jamie looked at it.

"What makes you think we want to join your little group?"

The leader looked at her, "You seem to have similar views as us."

The small group left but that didn't mean anything, she looked at Bones and under the guise of kissing his neck, she whispered in his ear, "Don't break cover, they're gonna grab us." Jamie was right, they got down the street before they were cornered and knocked out from behind.

* * *

"… ll fucking kill you, get away from her. I swear if she's hurt…" Bones was pissed.

She blinked open her eyes, "Owww."

Someone chuckled, "Well, look who's awake. Hello Miss Kirk, or is it Cadet Kirk?" Jamie blinked a few times to clear the blurriness.

"It's just Kirk, no 'miss,' no 'cadet,' just Kirk," she told him.

The guy nodded, "I'm Pax. I'm sorry my guys were rough with you, they aren't sure what you're doing out here. I guess they decided to play it safe. You know, the press made a big deal over you joining Starfleet, but here you are. So tell me, why aren't you still there?"

She looked at him, "I thought it was what my father would want but the longer I was there, more I was surrounded by weakness, and the more I knew I needed to leave. Glad I didn't waste anymore time in that place. Brought him with me." She nodded towards Bones, they decided the stick as close to the truth as possible.

Pax laughed, "He's been giving us grief since he woke up, more worried about you then himself. Why is that?"

"He's a doctor, a good one. You assholes hit me in the head, it doesn't take a fucking rocket scientist to figure out his problem with you," Jamie said as if it was the most relaxed conversation in the world. Pax nodded to someone she didn't see and suddenly, her arms were free.

Bones got over to her, "These idiots are lucky that you aren't hurt." Jamie looked at Pax as Bones checked her over.

"Well, you got me here, what the hell do you want?"

Pax chuckled, "Walk with me." Jamie stood up, she and Bones followed him through the compound.

"Nice set up you got here," Bones said from next to her.

Pax nodded, "My _friends_ and I have what we need, that's enough for us."

Jamie looked around, she spotted Sulu leaning against the wall, having what looked like a flirtatious conversation with Uhura, Jamie knew better. The two of them were pulled into Redux before her and Bones, Sulu first and Uhura second. They've been checking everything out, as soon as they got the chance, they would all get together, get their intel and get out. She listened as Pax told them how Redux worked, and thought. She'd be sick if it wasn't for the fact that she expected it, the worst thing that ever happened to her was done by another human, not an alien.

"We could use someone like you around here," Pax said to her.

"And if I say no?"she asked.

Pax chuckled, "And why would you do that?"

Jamie looked at him, "I don't play well with others, the doc is an exception."

Pax chuckled, "Stick around, see what we've got going on and then decide."

She glanced at Bones, he shrugged, "Fine, a few days. We'll sleep in the same room." Pax motioned to another person in the room and had a whispered conversation with him, Bones leaned close to Jamie and whispered in her ear, "Does this mean we're in?"

Jamie nodded, "For now."


	32. Dammit, Jim, Stay Awake

"Dammit Jim, stay awake," she could feel Bones' hands on her. Breathe, all she had to do was breathe. They were at the compound for five days when they got their opportunity to find the information they needed. It was stored in two different systems, Jamie and Bones went for one while Sulu and Uhura went for the other. Hacking into the system was the easy part, getting out, not so much. Sulu and Uhura had cleared the exit when Bones and Jamie were stopped. She tried to talk their way out, but it turned into a fight quickly. Jamie got them out but took a bullet in her side. "Who the hell uses projectile weapons anymore? Come on, stay with me, darlin'."

The only thing keeping her alert was Bones yelling at her. Fixing a bullet wound wasn't difficult, it went straight through, the hard part was trying to fix it while you're trying to get away from the people shooting at you. Fortunately, Sulu and Uhura didn't go far and Trip had a small team on the ground that moved in to cover and extract them. She could hear Jack on the comm with Trip, she knew the man well enough to know that he was not gonna be happy. Jamie was drifting, she could feel Bones' hands on her side and Uhura's hands in her hair, she didn't know where Sulu was but she could hear him talking.

Jamie listened to Uhura tease her in Italian, " _You're going to kick yourself when you realize that you've spent the whole ride with your head in my lap and you couldn't do anything_."

Jamie gave her a week smile, " _That sounds like an offer_ , Ny."

The linguist chuckled, " _You wish_ , Jamie."

She smirked, " _Like you wouldn't believe_." She heard Uhura laugh. Jamie was fading out, Bones said something that Jamie didn't hear before she passed out.

* * *

When she came to, the first thing that she noticed was that she wasn't moving any more, the second thing was a voice.

"... you're the one who taught Jamie how to make that, I figured it was Hoshi or her aunt." Bones, that was Bones talking to someone.

There were clean linens under her fingers and the smell of being in a hospital, she was in a bio-bed; they were back at Trip's nameless compound. Jamie listened for a little while longer, but she couldn't make out everything the other person said, she knew the voice though.

"What are you two talking about?" it came out just above a whisper. Bones chuckled and Trip was next her in a flash.

"Your cookin', especially your shrimp and grits, Doc says they aren't bad for a mid-western girl."

Jamie slowly opened her eyes, "Grits sound really good right about now."

Trip smiled, "When he gives you the okay, I'll make you some."

She sighed, "Real ones, not replicated? With tons of cheddar? And bacon and eggs and toast?"

"Of course, this is me you're talking to," he chuckled. "How you feeling, J.T.?" Jamie looked around, "Like I got shot. How did we do?"

He took her hand, "Spock, Gaila and Chekov are working on the decryption as we speak. You guys did good." She looked at him while Bones scanned her.

"You sound like that's a bad thing."

Trip shook his head, "You're already on 31's radar, I think I made it worse. You're a good operative."

She smirked, "Well, I had a good teacher. I'll worry about your boss later."

"You know, your boyfriend has been ranting since you guys got back. He ain't so bad," Trip told her. Jamie raised an eyebrow as he continued, "He did a damn good job. His taste in football teams is horrible but I think I can overlook it." Jamie laughed, Bones was a fan of the Ole Miss Rebels and Trip loved the University of Florida Gators. The two teams have been battling it out for centuries, Jamie smiled that the teams gave the guys common ground... men.

"How long was I out? And where is everybody?"

Bones answered her from the end of the bed, "A few hours. Just long enough for me to do my job. You can get up if you want but you gotta take it easy. They moved the ship into the hanger, so everyone is here. You know, that was the dumbest thing I've ever seen."

She rolled her eyes, "They were gonna shoot you. I made the logical choice, I can't patch you up and you're heavier than me." He was about to say something but stopped at the look she gave him, she had a point and he knew it. Jamie got up, with some help from Trip she was standing on her own feet.

Bones watched her for a moment. "Don't overdo it, please." She knew what he was thinking but didn't say. She nodded and Trip spoke.

"I'm gonna take her in with the others, see if this brain of hers can't help get into the intel you found. If that's alright with you Doc."

Bones crossed his arms over his chest, "Like I have a say in this."

Sulu and Uhura were in the room with the others when Jamie, Trip and Bones entered.

" _You look better. I was starting to worry_ ," Uhura said to her in Italian.

Jamie smiled, "Y _ou do care about me._ "

Nyota rolled her eyes, " _Maybe a little._ "

"You guys know that none of us understand you, right?" Kelso asked from where he was sitting.

Jamie chuckled, "It's Italian. Trip and Spock understand us just fine. Just be glad we aren't speaking in Klingon or Romulan." Kelso gave them a look and Uhura smirked.

" _Look at his face,_ " the linguist said in Klingon.

Jamie laughed, " _Don't know why people don't believe us. It's one of the first languages I learned._ "

Sulu chuckled, "Now they're just messing with you, Lee."

Gaila chuckled and shook her head, "You should feel special. They don't pull out the Klingon for just anybody."

Jamie sat in an empty seat and helped with the decryption, she smiled when Trip placed food in front of her a few hours later, "And that's is why I love you."

He chuckled and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "There's plenty for everyone. Just don't eat the vegetarian meal I made for Spock." The Vulcan seemed surprised that someone would make food just for him. Trip shrugged, "I served with T'Pol for a long time and lived on Vulcan for a while. Just don't expect me to eat plomeek soup, though… I draw the line there."

Jamie laughed, "There's nothing wrong with plomeek soup, Trip."

He smiled at her, "You eat anything."

She shrugged, "Almost starved to death, remember." Spock and Scotty both looked at her, Spock's face gave away nothing but Scotty was an open book.

Trip chuckled, "I thought you said that they knew."

"Everybody but Spock and Scotty. Tell 'em if you want, I don't have the energy for that conversation right now." Whatever Trip was about to say was cut off by Chekov.

" _I got it_!" the kid called. 

Everyone moved so that they could see his screen, Bones summed it up the best, "Oh my God." Jamie looked at Pike and Trip, "We gotta warn the fleet."


	33. If We Don't Stop This...

"If we don't stop this…" Jamie took a breath and finished Bones' statement.

"A lot of people will die. The last time anybody tried this was in 2053 towards the end of the third world war. A simultaneous viral assault crippled the New United Nations mainframe. That combined with a ballistic missile assault destroyed the world as it was. Everything from communications, security, utilities, food, the whole system crashed. If they pull this off, using the cloaked ship to destroy major cities, it would create mass hysteria. They would cause a panic and raise the xenophobia to a whole new level."

Sulu shook his head, "Then they could pull a Paxton and try to kick all the non-humans off planet."

Kelso spoke up, "Or worse, they could pull a Green and just kill anyone not up to snuff… good old eugenics."

World war three traces back to the 2020's, but the major conflict happened in the 2050's. The United States and the European Union made up the New United Nations and were against what was called the Eastern Coalition. E.C.O.N. was made up of Asian and Middle Eastern countries. On the first of May, 2053, they launched a bomber and nuclear attack against major cities in the U.S. and Europe. The New United Nations fired back and it turned into an all out nuclear war.

A few days later, E.C.O.N. launched an invasion of North America, the U.S. military suffered massive losses. American forces killed E.C.O.N.'s leader but the destabilization was worldwide. The United States of America was one of the only nations to survive but with all the destroyed cities, the crash of federal support and warlords taking control, the nation was in as much chaos as the rest of the world. A cease-fire was called at the end of 2053 and the living leaders met in San Francisco to end the war.

In 2054, Colonel Philip Green, a New United Nations solider, turned up in Alaska at the head of a massive army comprised of both New U.N. and E.C.O.N. soldiers. President Mendoza, the last President of the United States of America, ordered Green to stand down, but he refused and slaughtered his way across the continent. He killed those he deemed the 'weak' and 'impure' and those afflicted with radiation-sickness from humanity's gene pool, killing millions, until finally meeting his demise in Montana from an orbital strike.

When it was all said and done, most of the world's nations were gone and over 600 million people were killed. Ten years later, Zefram Cochran made first contact with the Vulcans.

John Frederick Paxton was the same brand of crazy as Green. Paxton was the head of Terra Prime; they were terrorists, plain and simple. They threatened to destroy the pre-Federation Starfleet HQ if the non-humans didn't leave earth. Jamie had a special hatred for them. The baby they created with Trip and T'Pol's DNA died because of their bad science and even though he didn't know about her for long, little Elizabeth T'Les Tucker was still very much Trip's daughter. She's buried on Vulcan next to T'Pol's mother, Jamie visited on a few occasions.

Sometimes, Jamie wondered if he always looked out for her because he couldn't protect his child. She knew it was a dumb thing to worry about, but on her worst days, the thought crossed her mind. Trip would be the first to tell her that she was crazy, mainly because he never treated her like a kid, let alone his kid.

Trip and Pike walked into the room and the captain spoke to the group, "We notified Archer and Reed about what we found, they want us to head back to earth. They have a team in the area to take out Redux and ships monitoring this sector and ours."

Jamie shook her head, "That won't make a difference. Redux is prepping to launch this mission as we speak and the ship is cloaked. If I had to guess, they're already heading that way. I would be."

Trip nodded, "Which is why we need to leave, now. You got room for two more on that ship of yours?"

"You can have my quarters and I'll room with Gaila," Uhura said from next to Jamie, the Orion nodded in agreement.

From there everything happened quickly; Trip and Jack were going with them back to earth, they were packed and on the ship in a flash. Jamie sat in her quarters as they were headed back to earth. Bones walked in and watched her for a few minutes before he said anything. "What is the plan? Is there a plan? I mean, I get that we're crunched for time and all but we can't run off half-cocked," Bones asked what Jamie was sure was the question on everyone's minds.

"Trip and Pike are working on it. I'm sure that whatever they come up with, you won't like it."

He rolled his eyes, "That's because you always end up doing something stupid. Did you ever consider that?"

"Did you ever consider that I know what I'm doing? That I'm not as reckless as you think?" He looked at her, Jamie knows she's a little crazy but her heart was always in the right place. She wanted to do the right thing no matter what it cost her; it was one of the only traits that Jamie _knew_ she got from her dad.

"Yes, I do know that you're brilliant but that doesn't mean I like watching you get hurt, Jim. I won't be around forever and I won't always be able to fix it. You scared the shit outta me. The fucked up part, is that I know you'll turn around and do some shit like that again. You always do." Jamie took a breath, she wasn't going to argue with him, he was right.

"What would you like me to do, Bones? Sit on my hands and pretend that bad things don't happen? Let people get hurt or die? Tell me what you want me to do," She was calm, Bones wasn't. "I'll sit this out if that's what you want, but you gotta tell me what you want. I'm at a loss here, Len."

"I want you to think, Jim. You mean a lot to more people than you think."

"That's what you think, that I _don't_ think?"she asked. "I hate to break it to you but there are a million things running through my mind at any given moment. The top three things I'm thinking about right now are; if we fail, Joanna and Kevin are on that planet. Your daughter and a kid that I killed for, that I protected with my life. I'm thinking about the hundred and three ways that everyone on this ship could end up dead and I'm thinking that I don't like you being mad at me for being myself. I am always thinking. I've been on the other side of this, where all it took was for someone to do the right thing and I was the only one who stepped up... I was thirteen and I'm the only one who did anything. I know that it comes off as reckless, but I'm honestly the least reckless person you know aside from Spock." Jamie took a breath, "I'm gonna go find something to do before one of us says something we'll regret later." Jamie hopped up and left the room; she slammed right into Trip near medical.

"I don't like that look on your face, J.T. Come on." If this ship was bigger, they'd be in a Jefferies tube but leaning against the wall in the cargo bay would just have to do. "You know he's just worried."

She nodded, "Yep, I still reserve the right to be pissed off for a little while. If you're gonna stay, shut up, Tucker." Trip chuckled and sat down next to her on the floor and let Jamie rest her head on his shoulder.

"Fair enough."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Memory Alpha and Beta for info on Star Trek's version of WW3.


	34. What Did You Call Me?

"What did you call me?" she heard Bones ask someone. Jamie knew she should just turn around and walk away but she couldn't move from where she was standing outside medical. She glanced at Uhura and Gaila, both women shrugged and kept listening.

"You hard of hearing too? She loves you. I have never seen her look at anyone the way she looks at you. So, _you_ are a _dumbass_." It was Trip and he was _not_ happy.

She could hear Bones huff, "I don't have time for this."

"Maybe you should make time. You've known her for two years and you still don't get it, so I'm gonna explain it to you." Trip stopped and took a breath, "I bet you never stopped to wonder why she fights so hard, or why there are nights when you wake up and she's sitting at the window instead of being in bed. Why she cooks but barely eats. Or the real reason people taking about her dad bothers her. Jamie doesn't fight for herself, she fights for the people who died to protect her. She blames herself because people have been blaming her so long she thinks it's the truth when it's further from. It really pisses her off that her father gave his life for her, because she doesn't think she's worth it. Everybody knows about George but nobody gives a damn about her mother or Aunt Marie and Uncle Jeff, they didn't just die, Kodos killed them. Jamie saw his men drag Hoshi into her garden and put a phaser to her head; a decorated Starfleet officer was executed in the one place she felt peace because she wouldn't tell him where Jamie was. Joan Riley, Kevin's mom, handed her six-year-old son to Jamie and told them to run while she used her body to shield them from the enforcers slaughtering colonists. The people Jamie killed to keep those kids alive; her kill count is almost as high as mine and I got a hundred years on her. The shit she's seen in her twenty-four years would make a two hundred year old quiver in fear."

Trip was getting riled up. By now, everybody who wasn't on duty –Spock, Chekov and Kelso- was listening to him, though, she was sure Gamma shift could hear him. "Then there are the things that she won't talk about. I have an idea but I'm too scared to even ask. She's been through too much for you to start doubting her, not when she spends every waking moment praying to Gods that she doesn't even believe in that you don't get killed because of her. The last thing she wants is to turn your daughter into an orphan like she is. The thought of Joanna growing up without you, literally, makes her heart hurt. This mission isn't about saving earth, it's about saving your family. They had no reason to care about her and they do. Jamie is one of the best people I've ever known. Even with everything she's been through, she still smiles. There is wonder in her eyes when she looks at the universe; she lights up. That girl is like a star that drew us all in. Get your head outta your ass or your gonna lose her."

"Why the fuck do you care? Where were you when she needed you?" Bones almost yelled.

Trip chuckled, "Keepin' her out of Section 31. They've been trying to get their hooks in her since Tarsus. Starfleet pulled three thousand nine hundred and forty-one people from that planet and the hero of the whole thing was a thirteen year old girl who almost killed their six-man away team, by herself. When she went to school on Vulcan she lived with me; that house is more hers than mine; I signed it over to her last year. She had classmates in Italy who weren't there for the computer programming. The friend she stayed with in Riverside, was one of my operatives. I was supposed to be done with this shit years ago, but I couldn't let someone take another choice from her. I couldn't let them use the deaths of the people she loved to turn her into a monster. I've spent the last decade standing between Jamie and Section 31. When I told her that I'd chop off my arm before I ever let 31 recruit her, I wasn't kidding. I'm where she needs me to be, you should try it." Trip walked out of medical and everyone attempted to scatter in the small corridor; Jamie didn't bother. "You weren't supposed to hear that," Trip said to her as he wiped the tears from her face.

Jamie shrugged, "Like I didn't know all of that already, especially the operatives following me around at school. Observational awareness and all that jazz."

He smirked, "That's my girl. You weren't mad?"

"Nope. I figured that as long as they were around, you were alive. And it was nice that somebody cared," she whispered to her oldest friend.

He smiled, "Until my heart stops, and then I'll haunt you."

He kissed the top of her head, "Go get some sleep, J.T." She nodded and turned to head towards her quarters.

"Hey, Trip?" She turned to face him.

"Yea."

"I never got the chance to thank you. So, thank you, you know, for caring and looking out for me and everything else that I don't know about," she said to him.

Trip smiled, "You are very welcome, little one." Jamie nodded and headed to her quarters and to bed.

* * *

"Kirk. Kirk, wake up."

Jamie blinked her eyes open, "Is it time."

Uhura nodded, "We're an hour out." Jamie sat up, she wasn't surprised that Bones wasn't in the room but she was disappointed; it must have shown on her face because Uhura sat next to her on the bed.

"Give him some time. This is a side of you that you've never really shown. That stuff with the nanites and on the Republic were like teaser trailers and now he's watching the movie," Ny offered. Jamie chuckled at the analogy, it was pretty close. She took a breath.

"Of all the things I thought we'd fight about, this wasn't it." The fact that she's a flirt would've been her first guess, but other than being pissed about that kiss with Trip, he never said anything.

Uhura understood, "You know, just when I think I have you figured out, Kirk, you flip the script on all of us."

Jamie shrugged, "Don't feel bad, I don't have myself figured out yet." The two girls kept talking as they got up and walked to the galley for a quick meal, Jack and Scotty made breakfast. They all chatted with each other until Bones walked in and the room went silent.

"Way to be subtle, idiots," he grumbled. Gaila glared at him, Kelso didn't even look in his direction, Brax, Chekov and Jack ignored him, Scotty was outright mean.

"Monty, be nice," she told her Scottish friend. He looked at her like she was crazy, "For me, please." He nodded and didn't say anything else. Spock looked at each of them.

"Is this the moment where friends of a couple chose sides in an argument?" he asked his girlfriend.

Uhura smiled, "Yes, and as you can see, most of us picked Jamie. Doctor McCoy is being a jerk."

Spock thought for a second, "Expressing his concern for Kirk's well-being is 'being a jerk'?" Jamie was about to laugh, Uhura answered his question.

"It's not just what he said, it's how and when he said it," the linguist told him. The answer seemed to be enough for Spock.

"After contemplating the current argument, and your analysis, I will also side with Miss Kirk."

Bones rolled his eyes, "That's just great, even the walking computer is picking sides." He looked at her before leaving the room. Trip laughed from behind the PADD he was reading, and eventually, so was Jamie.

"This is your fault, Trip."

He nodded, "Probably. It'll work out, he loves you too much to just let it go."


	35. I Know You're Mad at Me, But…

"I know you're mad at me, but…"

Jamie cut him off, "I'm not mad at you. I'm hurt that you don't trust my judgment."

They had just been briefed on the mission, Jamie had a few minutes to gather her thoughts and head to the transporter in the middle of the ship, but Bones stopped her from getting too far out of the galley. The timing sucked but they needed to have this out. This mission was only going to get one shot, hopefully, this worked because they might end up dead if it doesn't.

"There aren't a lot of things that scare me anymore, but the idea of something happening to you terrifies me; you only got a glimpse of that when Viktor attacked you. Everyone I have ever loved is dead except Sam and Trip and I wasn't sure about either of them for a while, I'm waiting for the day when I get the comm that one of them is dead. You have no idea what it feels like when you get hurt because, unlike you, I can't fix it. There's nothing I can do and I feel this helplessness that I've _never_ felt before. Then my head goes to Joanna and I pray every day that she won't end up like me. I'm not careless Bones, I'm just not careful, I never had a reason to be. I trust my instincts because they are the only things that have kept me alive this long and I refuse to feel bad about it. Either you get that or you don't." Bones looked at her for a moment before he reached over and pulled her into his arms.

"I get it, Jim. Doesn't mean I won't bitch and moan but I get it." He didn't apologize and she didn't want him to, she stood in his arms for another second before she took a breath and stepped away from him.

"Time to go save the day," she muttered.

He chuckled and nodded, "Just don't die on me, anything else I can probably fix."

She smiled, "I'll do my best." Jamie zipped up her tactical suit as they met the others at the transporter. She bumped into Pike, "Sorry, sir."

He chuckled, "It's alright, Kirk. Not a lot of space in this room." The captain wasn't happy with Jamie or Bones. Fighting on a mission was unprofessional, even though he understood where they were both coming from. Pike hated that she ran into danger all the time but he knew that it was part of who she is, he was the only person that didn't pick sides. She doesn't know what he said to Bones but he simply told her not to do something she'll regret later.

"Alright, boys and girl, time to do this," Scotty said from the transporter console, Bones and Pike were standing behind him.

The mission was two-fold; one team –Trip, Glorak and Jack- were after Pax, the other team –Jamie, Sulu and Brax- were to set off a localized electromagnetic pulse device in the other ship's main computer, cloaking and weapons systems. Gaila and Spock had figured out a way to get close to the ship without being detected -pretending to be space debris- and disabled the shields without the other crew noticing; now they were close enough to teleport over.

"On your order, J.T." She had no idea why Trip was letting her call the shots but she went with it. Jamie nodded and glanced at the men standing with her on the teleport pad.

She took a deep breath, "Mister Scott, energize."

* * *

The other vessel was a Federation configuration, Trip was going to have someone look into how Redux got their hands on it. The group made their way through the corridor and split into their teams at the designated spot. There were three men in the computer core. Jamie didn't have to give the order, Sulu went left, Brax went right and Jamie took center. They knocked the men out and Jamie got to work setting the first E.M.P. It was a scary little device that disabled electronics within a certain radius. She finished her task quickly and the team headed for weapons, which is also where the cloaking system is located. Sulu disabled the guy monitoring the room and Jamie set the device.

"Alright guys, let's go. Delta to Echo, we're ready," she spoke into the comm.

The voice that responded was not one she expected, "Sorry, your friends can't come to the comm right now."

"Where are they Pax?" she asked.

He laughed, "Figure it out. If I were you, I'd hurry, your Tellarite friend doesn't look so good." Jamie looked at Sulu and Brax, she could set the E.M.P.'s off but there was no guarantee that they won't kill Jack and Trip if she did. She didn't get a chance to think about it because a lot of people started shooting at them, at least it was phasers this time.

"Move," she called to her guys Jamie and Brax shot their way out of the room, she wasn't letting Sulu loose with that collapsible katana, yet. They made their way to where the other team was; Glorak and Trip were laying on the floor. Jamie knew it was a trap, but she was too worried about them to think about it, "

Weapon on the floor, Kirk." Jamie looked at Pax; Jack was standing next to him with a smirk on his face.

"Don't tell me you didn't see that coming, you really shouldn't have trusted me," Jack told her. The thing was, she didn't trust him at all, but she would play along. She slid her phaser towards the two men, Sulu and Brax did the same with the katana and the phase rifle. She rolled Glorak onto his back; she wasn't surprised to find him dead. She moved over to Trip; he was hurt but still breathing.

"Nothing to say, Kirk?" She looked at Jack and shook her head.

"It doesn't matter what I say," she told him.

He nodded, "I bet you're wishing that you listened to your boyfriend right about now."

She shrugged, "I guess. Not that it would've mattered."

Jack chuckled, "True."

With Jack being a member of Redux, Jamie finally figured out where they got the Suliban tech; it was the one question that she couldn't answer. It also explained how they knew about her and Bones when they were undercover, this whole thing was a set-up. Jamie's saving grace what that she did her own research and so did Trip. She touched his face and felt a subtle kiss against her wrist; she knew he was faking. This was something he taught her a long time ago, " _The best weapon you'll ever have is your opponent's ego. People think that just because they have you where they want you, that you're out of the game, you can use that against them. Play dead, play dumb, fake cry, fake injury, get pissed off, anything you need to keep them thinking that they have the upper hand. That's when you strike._ "

Jack went into a monologue about purifying humanity and taking their planet back, Jamie just raised an eyebrow.

"Can you just kill me now and get it over with?" she asked. They all looked at her. "I mean, seriously. I would rather die than listen to the two of you for another minute."

Pax shook his head, "You don't get off that easily, you're too useful. I'd be more than happy to kill your friends though." He got close enough for her to strike, and she did… hard, breaking his nose. Trip didn't disappoint, he pulled the knife from her boot and threw it at Jack; Trip hit him right in the chest. The traitor dropped to his knees with wide eyes before he hit the deck.

"Nice throw," Jamie told Trip as she helped him up.

"That's where you got that from?" Sulu asked with a smile.

"Yep. Pissed Hoshi off something fierce, we nicked a few of her plants. Grab Glorak, I'm not leaving him here," she ordered. Sulu and Braxim moved to their dead friend while Jamie picked Pax up off the deck and Trip comm'ed for Scotty to beam them back. Jamie smirked at Spock and Pike who stood in the transporter room, phasers at the ready. Pike looked them over.

"Take Glorak's body to medical. Spock, secure Mister Pax," the captain told them. The Vulcan grabbed him with a little more force than he would usually use. Pike comm'ed to the bridge, "Gaila, activate the E.M.P.'s. Uhura comm the Yorktown." Pike's former ship was sent to back them up. Pike, Jamie, and Trip made it to the bridge before he was done talking. The ship shimmered into view just as the Yorktown dropped out of warp. The ship _was_ Federation, which meant that Jack wasn't working alone. The ship was caught in the Yorktown's tractor beam –not that they could go anywhere, anyway- and Pax was beamed over to their brig. Pike ordered them to head back to Starbase One and gave the con to Uhura.

* * *

"Did you always know he was a traitor?" Pike asked the both of them when they stepped into his quarters/office, Jamie and Trip both nodded.

Trip took a breath. "I fed Redux so much fake intel that it's not even funny. Jack thought I wouldn't notice. He also thought Jamie was just some dumb kid that I looked after and I let him. I don't think he realized how dangerous she is. Most people don't."

This mission wasn't the first time she's encountered Jack; he's popped up a few different places she's been over the last few years. Jamie was observant and Jack wasn't as subtle as he thought. She ran her own checks on him years ago, Jamie wasn't surprised that Trip knew. He told her that Jack was going to show his cards, when he did, they could take him out.

After filling Pike in on their thoughts, Jamie went to Medical. Gaila was helping Bones record everything about Glorak's body for the report. The doctor looked up as she entered the room, "You okay?"

She shrugged, "No damage. I need a shower but that's it."

He looked her over, "Not what I meant, darlin'." She knew that.

"They didn't have a reason to kill him, Bones." He put down the scanner he was holding and moved to hug her. After a few minutes, he reached over to Gaila.

"Come on, you get over here too," he said. The Orion joined their hug, and it true Gaila fashion, she laughed.

"When I said I wanted a threesome, this is not what I had in mind."


	36. Like Anyone Would Believe Us

"Like anyone would believe us," Bones muttered as they left the building. Jamie just chuckled at Bones. They finished their briefing with Archer and Reed, before they left the Admirals gave them the whole 'this is classified' and 'thank you for your service' lines. Jamie didn't think anything of it because she knew it was coming but Bones was a little annoyed that the last three weeks, technically, didn't happen. Starfleet Intel took Pax and his Redux friends into custody, and Jamie didn't want to know how they were getting intel about that ship.

Officially, Glorak was killed in a training exercise. They had their own memorial for him before Starfleet sent his remains home to Tellar Prime. Going back to class without him was going to be difficult; he was one of the first friends that Jamie made at the academy. Trip disappeared almost as soon as they docked at the Starbase. Bones rolled his eyes when they realized he was gone, " _Does he always leave like that?_ " Jamie smiled; she knew he would pop up eventually. He had a compound that was compromised and a team to relocate. She found her knife –which was technically his knife- in her bag with a note that he'd be back for it later. Jamie laughed at that, she's had that damn thing since she was eleven, he wasn't getting it back.

They had ten days left before classes resumed, everyone decided to head home. Gaila went to New York where Gary was still on leave. Uhura went to see her family in Kenya. Chekov returned to Russia. Kelso and Sulu, whose family recently moved back, were heading to San Francisco; Brax went with them. Bones and Jamie went to the McCoy's. Pike got approval to beam Blue Squad to the surface, and that's how they found themselves being teleported home.

"Daddy!" Jamie smiled as the smallest McCoy came running out of the house. She watched as the usually grumpy doctor smiled and scooped the little girl in his arms. Joanna waved at her over his shoulder, "Hi Jamie."

"Hi, sweetie." Jamie replied to mini-Bones.

"Hey sweetheart," Mama Ella welcomed them both with hugs. Jamie looked at the older woman; Ella looked tired. Ella asked Jamie to give her a minute with Bones. She knew something was wrong. Jamie nodded and told Joanna to lead the way. The pair told each other dumb jokes and laughed as they made their way upstairs. Joanna was such a smart kid, she asked all kinds of questions and her face lit up when Jamie started speaking different languages to her. If Bones isn't careful, she'll end up a linguist.

Jamie got cleaned up and changed into pajamas; it was nighttime when they got there. She sat on the bed with Jo and was challenged to a game of Go Fish. After twenty minutes, Bones stepped into the room, "Hey, Jo. Aunt Donna is looking for you. I think it's your bedtime." The girl jumped up and after giving them both a kiss on the cheek, she left the room. Bones shut the door, sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Jamie.

"Bones, what's wrong?" she asked.

"Mama just told me that my dad is sick. Pyrrhoneuritis. He's gonna die, Jim." Jamie's heart broke as she wrapped her arms around him.

Pyrrhoneuritis was a rare disease that humans got from colony worlds. It's fast acting and usually fatal. David worked off planet for years before returning to his hometown and settling down to have Donna and Leonard. Ella told Bones before he saw David, who was already in bed. She didn't want them to be shocked at his weight loss. He was diagnosed a few weeks ago and the disease had already begun to affect him.

"Donna's pissed at me. She thinks I should've been here to fix it but she doesn't get that the disease is incurable. There's nothing I _can_ do." Jamie didn't say anything, she just held him. She doesn't know how long they stayed like that, but eventually, they both fell asleep.

When Jamie woke up it was morning. She detangled herself from Bones and watched him for a few minutes; it wasn't fair. When she met Bones, he was a mess. He was so angry at Jocelyn and the world that he felt like the only place he could go was space… even though he hates it. When they were just friends, Jamie did everything she could think of to get him back into the world. She doesn't know if she was trying to prove to him or herself that life was worth living, but she didn't let him wallow in self-pity. This is a blow that Bones, and his family, didn't deserve or need.

Jamie walked downstairs and followed the voice she heard to the kitchen, Bones was right about Donna being pissed. David was sitting across from her and Jamie could see the onset of pyrrhoneuritis in his features. Jamie squeezed his shoulders and sat down next to him.

"How you doin' old man?" she asked.

He smiled, "Still kicking, despite what my daughter thinks." Donna rolled her eyes and looked at Jamie.

"Did Leo tell you?" her boyfriend's sister asked. Jamie nodded. "Did he tell you that he wouldn't do anything, too?"

Ella jumped in from behind Jamie, "There's nothing he can do, Donna. You will not take this out on your brother." Donna ignored her mother and kept ranting.

Jamie got fed up, "Donna, stop." She didn't. Jamie glanced at David and tried again, "Donna, stop!" Bones' sister looked at her. "This isn't helping. Bones is already beating himself up and none of this is his fault. I get that you're upset and scared but don't take it out on him."

"You wouldn't understand, Jamie," Donna said to her dismissively. Jamie hated it when people said that to her.

"Actually, I understand more than you do. My parents are dead. As in gone and never coming back. I never got to know either of them; I would give anything for five minutes with my dad, anything. You're dad is right here, he's sick, not dead. If you're gonna spend the time he has left arguing with your brother, than you are wasting a gift and destroying your relationship with Len at the same time." Donna huffed and then started to cry, Ella pulled her into a hug and David reached over and took her hand.

Donna looked at her, "You're too good for my brother."

"Don't I know it," Bones was standing in the entryway.

Jamie shook her head, "I'm gonna disagree with you. Not that you'll listen."

Donna looked at her brother, "Leo…"

He cut her off, "You're worried and scared no need to apologize."


	37. Go Back to Sleep, Jim

"Go back to sleep, Jim," Bones whispered as he slid into bed. Jamie rolled over to face him; he was exhausted.

After spending nine days with his family, they had to go back to class. Jamie wasn't surprised when Bones took up a new research project for the year; curing pyrrhoneuritis. He spent every moment that he wasn't in class or working in the emergency room, in the lab. She didn't argue about it, he was doing what he needed for his dad. This was one of those nights where he's only in bed because someone –Uhura and/or Spock, if she had to guess- forced him to go home. Blue Squad made sure he didn't work himself to death, they pulled him out of the lab or forced him to eat when he needed it. The team went on missions in the nearly three months since they'd been back, but nothing as major as the first one.

The next day marked the beginning of the Assassination Game, Jamie –and the rest of Blue Squad- was making Bones play. He grumbled but agreed since they were all there. Everyone gathered at the designated staging area and listened as Cadet Luther, a pretty girl studying navigation, laid down the ground rules.

"Welcome to the Assassination Game. The whole thing is pretty simple. You will each get the name of another player, you track them down and eliminate them. When you get the kill, you also get their target, the game ends when one player stands," Luther told them. Everyone broke into quiet but excited conversations. Bones looked at Jamie and Gaila.

"Why'd I let ya'll talk me into this?" he asked the two women.

"Because you love us, Leonard," Gaila replied.

Sulu looked at him, "We aren't gonna let you wear yourself thin. We know what you're working in is important but if you burn out, you can't help your dad or anyone else."

Kelso jumped in, "Yea, and I don't know if you noticed but there are whispers that you and Jamie broke up since no one sees you together anymore. That Thanas guy won't leave her alone." Bones glanced over at the Andorian that Jamie, Gaila and Uhura told him about. Even though they ignore him, when he thinks there's an opening, he asks one of them out. Bones wrapped his arm around Jamie's waist and pulled her closer.

"You didn't tell me that," he said against her shoulder.

Jamie shrugged, "Nothing you can do about it. You got more important things to worry about and I can handle him. He's annoying but so are a lot of people." They turned their attention back to Luther who told them the rules; you have to get your target alone and the only 'weapon' was the standard issue titanium spork from the galley. Kelso offered to help pass them out; Jamie, Gaila and Uhura couldn't help but tease him.

" _Lee,_ " the girls sang. He liked Luther. Jamie liked the woman; she was smart, pretty and brutally honest.

"The Varkolak!" Someone yelled from the back of the room. The cadets all shifted to look out the windows at the latest arrivals for the Interspecies Medical Summit. Most humans saw them as monsters, it didn't help that varkolak is the Bulgarian word for werewolf. Jamie looked at them and all she could see was leather, metal and fur.

"My uncle says they howl at the moon," one cadet said from the back of the room.

Another cadet joined in, "I heard that they bite the heads off of animals and drink the blood."

Brax spoke from next to her, "Professor Entarra says they want Theta Cygni." Jamie shook her head as even another cadet spoke.

"Federation wants the Gavaria Sector but I don't see them giving it up anytime soon," the kid said.

"Alright, children. The show's over," Bones said as the group entered a building and disappeared from view.

Jamie nodded, "Yea, some of us are part of the Added Security Detail, we gotta get this over with and report in."

Jamie, Brax, Sulu and Gaila -who decided to take up some extra combat training- were all part of the extra security. Luther got everyone's attention and instructed them to draw a name from the bag she held in her hand; it was their targets. Jamie smirked at the name and serial number she got. A few people got their own names and had to redraw. Once they each had their targets, they all left the room in small groups to go about their various tasks.

She and Bones made it out of the room and rounded the corner into an empty corridor. "I doubt anyone will come after you, Bones," she told him.

He looked at her, "How do you…" Bones stopped mid-sentence and found her touching his side with her spork.

"Sorry, sweetheart." She showed him the tag with his info on it.

"Dammit, Jim." She chuckled, gave him a quick kiss and took his target.

"You didn't even want to play. Love you, gotta go." She ran off to join Brax, Sulu and Gaila.

* * *

"Cadets, you are assigned to the Added Security Detail for as long as the Varkolak are with us. You will be assigned various shifts and posts though out the areas that they have been granted access. As you may not be aware, the fleet already has well-trained security officers, we don't need A.S.D. but Admiral Barnett thinks it's a good idea to let you get up-close with these _creatures_. Don't talk to them and let the _real_ security handle any issues." Jamie could taste the disdain coming off the chief who was charged with looking after them. She doesn't know if it's the Varkolak or if it's the group of cadets that bothers him more.

Jamie and the members of Blue Squad had their own orders, they were to report back to Barnett if anything happened and they had standard rules of engagement like the 'real' security. The chief didn't know that though. Chief Hard-Ass issued orders and Jamie found herself and Braxim assigned to a conference room.

"So, Brax, you want the spot with no window or the spot with no window?" Jamie asked her friend. He chuckled and picked the spot opposite to hers.

"How's McCoy?" he asked. Everyone on Blue Squad was worried about him.

Jamie took a breath, "He's ok, mostly. He doesn't think he'll be able to do anything for his dad, but David convinced him that he made be able to help others."

Brax looked at her, "That's noble. Maybe playing the game with the rest of us will help." Jamie shook her head and laughed.

"Nope, I already took him out, I'm after his target now."

Brax gave her a look, "It's not me is it?"

Jamie smiled, "No." Her new target was an Orion guy named Ard. Jamie would have to come up with a plan if she wanted to catch him. The idea to use her 'relationship issues' to her advantage crossed her mind for half a second but she pushed that to the bottom of her list.

The door opened causing Jamie and Brax to go to attention. It was a science team, and judging by Uhura's presence, a linguist or two.

"Hey Ny." Uhura didn't say anything, she just waved her greeting and went to help set up the desk-sized computer. Uhura walked over to her but before she could say anything, the door opened again and three Varkolak entered the room.

Damn, they were as ugly as people told her they were and they smelled like dogs. A better description of them would be bipedal wolves. The important one of the group sniffed the air and did a visual sweep of the room, his eyes stopping on the two female cadets.

The Federation scientist spoke, "Doctor Lartal, thank you for joining us. Please take a seat." Lartal snarled for some reason and Jamie knew already that she wasn't going to like him.

The scientist, whose name Jamie didn't know, explained that the linguistics department was interested in enhancing the Varkolak entry in the universal translator. Lartal played along for a while, eventually, he got pissed off, "This is a waste of time."

The scientist convinced him that the information was useful and convinced him to continue. The scientist asked if he could tell them some common phrases, he rattled off something that the technician at the computer read as 'Wind above… with a man who stands out from its prey… becomes predator.' Jamie didn't have to be a linguist to know that wasn't what Lartal said. Even though she wasn't supposed to, she spoke up.

"I think the Doctor said something closer to 'The man standing upwind from his prey becomes the prey.' It's like that saying we have here about the hunter becoming the hunted." They all looked at her and she shrugged, "My focus is tactical."

Lartal barked a laugh, "At least someone in this room has teeth." If Jamie had to guess, that meant she had guts or balls.

The scientist asked for more phrases; she didn't know when to quit and Lartal decided to fling insults. Braxim was getting upset.

Jamie whispered, "Don't do it, Brax." Her usually happy and easy-going friend was getting angrier and angrier as Lartal kept talking. "Man, it's not worth it." Lartal looked over at Jamie, and then at Brax.

"So, you all aren't simpering weaklings like your Admiral Barnett. Soft and shapeless like a Regulan blood worm." Jamie knew Brax well enough to know that he was ready to strike.

"Come on Brax, don't do it. He's entitled to his opinion," she told her friend. How the hell did she end up being the peacekeeper?

"That's right," Lartal said. "If I think Barnett is a Denebian slime devil, I'm entitled to that opinion." Jamie wished that he would shut up; she was sure he was baiting Brax at this point.

"Stand down, Braxim. We have our orders," Jamie was almost pleading with him, "We can take a couple insults." Brax looked at her, nodded and took a step back.

"Are there no men here whose blood boils with the spirit of the hunt? The call of the wild?" Lartal asked.

Jamie answered him, "Not today, Lartal."

The Varkolak looked at her, "Nobody ever told you, Cadet, that prey never chooses its day to die?"

She smirked at him, "Who says that I'm the prey? Or that I'll roll over and play dead? It's not my style." Lartal smiled –actually smiled- at her. The lead scientist –captain oblivious- asked how Lartal said something, he shook his head.

"No, you couldn't say it, you don't have the … What is the word?" Lartal told him.

Uhura spoke up, "Wildness… ferocity."

"Yes," Lartal nodded. Uhura took a breath and repeated the phrase, perfectly. Lartal and his bodyguards lit up. She translated the phrase for the group.

"From tooth and claw are the Varkolak born." Jamie smirked; Nyota was awesome. Lartal looked at Uhura, then at Jamie, then back to Uhura, a leer on his face the whole time.

"There aren't many earth women worthy of a Varkolak warrior," he told them. He looked them both up and down, "A bit less _ample_ than our women, perhaps. Hairless and thin liked shaved _katu_ , but that just makes them easier to mount." Jamie closed her eyes for a second.

"Maybe you want to rephrase that, Doctor. I think something got lost in translation," she told him. Lartal grinned and moved to stand in front of her.

"I didn't mean to say 'easy to mount.' What I meant to say is that I would take you both to bed and make you my bitches."

Jamie squared her shoulders, "Yea, that's what I thought you meant." Jamie reared back and slugged him; she was going to be in so much trouble later.


	38. That's My Girl

"That's my girl," Bones said with a kiss to her temple. Jamie honestly thought he'd be pissed at her. Bones was mad until Uhura told him what happened and how even she ended up fighting. "Barnett?"

"Wants to see us all as soon as you're done patching us up," she told him. He nodded and finished with the gash on her face and then he moved to Uhura.

"That guy is lucky he's not dead, you two and Braxim do a fuck-ton of damage, let me tell you," Bones said to the two women. Jamie leaned against the side of the biobed and watched Bones work on Uhura's hand. It was rare that she got to see him working on someone who wasn't her. Brax motioned for her from the hallway. She touched Bones' shoulder on her way past him.

"You alright buddy?" she asked Brax.

He nooded, "More worried about you and Nyota."

She smiled, "We're good, Bones has legendary hands." Braxim laughed and nodded, he was such a good guy; he spent the whole fight on Uhura's flank.

* * *

When they were all cleared to go, they headed to the Admiral's office. The officers that were in the room were already waiting, one of them looked at her, "He's waiting for you three before he kills us all." Jamie looked at Brax and Ny. Before they could say anything, Barnett's yeoman called for all of them to enter his office.

"I want to know who started it." Admiral Barnett was not happy, "I'm waiting." He paced in front of the line of officers and cadets standing in his office. Barnett stopped in front of a security officer –Freeman, if Jamie's memory served- and looked at him, "Who started the fight, Lieutenant?"

The officer took a breath, "I don't know, sir." At least there were still some men that believed in taking the hit together. Barnett moved to Uhura and asked her the same question, she said that she didn't know either; the Admiral was not amused. He glared at them.

Jamie took a breath, "Technically, Lartal started it but I threw the first punch, sir."

He looked at her, "Would you care to tell me why, Kirk?"

"You really don't want to know, sir. Trust me," she replied. It wasn't going to stop him from asking her again, and he did. Jamie told him the story from the beginning, when she finished he looked at the group.

"Is that what happened, Freeman?"

The officer nodded, "Yes, sir. Kirk really was trying to avoid an altercation but once he made those indecent comments to her and Cadet Uhura, there wasn't anything else she could do. She was defending her honor, sir. And cadet or not, she's one of ours. We don't leave our own in a fight without backup." Jamie made a mental note to buy Freeman a beer. Barnett looked at them and nodded.

"You are all dismissed. Kirk, stand fast." Jamie didn't like the sound of that. Uhura and Freeman gave her frustrated smiles and Brax touched her hand as they left the room. Barnett sat down at his desk, "You're lucky, if it was anybody else, I'd string them up. Unfortunately, I can't let you go unscathed; it'll look like I'm playing favorites."

She nodded, "I understand, sir."

Barnett chuckled, "For the rest of his stay, you will be Lartal's personal liaison when you aren't in class or seeing to your other duties."

"Huh… sir."

The admiral smiled, "You have a fan, Kirk. Lartal likes you. This is at his request and he asked that you not be disciplined for your behavior. He told me that two weeks in space is too long to go without a good fight and you were… 'just what the doctor ordered'." Jamie grimaced; she didn't want Lartal to like her more. Barnett continued, "This is still a charged situation; the fleet lost a lot of lives fighting the Varkolak at Vega Five and no one want's a repeat of that. I know you can handle yourself, Kirk." Barnett's faith in her made Jamie smile.

"I'll do my best to stay outta trouble, sir," she told him.

* * *

Bones was proud _and_ annoyed when she told him what Barnett said, "They really couldn't assign this to someone else?" She shook her head and stole a pepperoni from his slice of pizza, "Hey, that's the third time you've done that, get your own."

She chuckled, "What if I don't want to?" Bones raised an eyebrow; he sat his pizza on his plate and whipped off his hands. The look on his face told Jamie that she was in trouble, she slowly moved away from him, "Len. Don't."

He smiled, "Too late, darlin'." She hopped up and ran into their bedroom; Bones was right behind her. She sprinted to one side of the room, when he got close, she hopped on the bed and tried to run past him; Bones must've seen it coming because he caught her around her waist near the door and pulled her flush against his body.

"Ok, I won't take anymore of your pepperoni. I promise. Now, let me go."

He chuckled, "We both know I couldn't keep you here against your will, you'd kick my ass. I think you let me catch you, darlin'."

She smiled, "Maybe."

"Now, why would you go and do a thing like that?" he whispered against her lips before he kissed her.

One of his hands slid down her back and pulled her even closer, the other tangled in her hair. Jamie's hands grasped at his shirt, blindly searching for the hem. When she found it, she pulled it over his head and let it fall to the floor. She unfastened his jeans and pushed them off his legs. The next thing she knew, she was moving backward, then she felt the wall against her back; he had her caged in.

"You gotta stop wearing my clothes," he said against her neck while he unbuttoned the shirt she was wearing.

"No promises, sweetheart." He chuckled before sliding the shirt off her shoulders.

"This new?" he asked tracing his finger over the edge of her lacy bra.

She smiled, "Yes."

"I like it, nice choice." Of course, he was pulling it off of her body at the same time. He kissed her again; he was driving her crazy and he knew it. She felt his hands at her hips before she felt her jeans against her skin as he pushed them off her body. He looked her up and down, but unlike Lartal, Bones' gaze was filled with so much love, "God. You're beautiful."

Every time he says it, it's like he's seeing her for the first time and it made her heart melt. Jamie could admit that they'd been off since the mission with Trip and finding out that David was sick. Bones distanced himself from her and like an idiot, she let him. Gaila joked that it's what happens when you put two people together who sucked at relationships. They were still them, still Jim and Bones but they were more worn down and less connected than they used to be. Everybody noticed, hence the rumors that they broke up and only tolerate each other because they're still roommates.

Bones still had her pinned to the wall, then the next thing she knew, he picked her up; her legs wrapped around him without any thought. Jamie let out a very girly shriek when he gently tossed her on the bed. Bones kissed his way up her body and brought his lips to hers.

"Len," tumbled out of her mouth as he slid into her. The movement of his body against hers was too much, too good. She moved with him, getting lost in the way he felt. Jamie ran her fingers along his jaw; Bones closed his eyes at the contact and kissed her fingers when they were close enough to his mouth. Locking her eyes with his sent a rush of electricity through her, pushing her towards the edge. "Oh God," it came out as a chocked sob, she was so close. He changed the angle of his movements and she felt his rhythm falter, becoming less controlled. Jamie was so close, "Len," fell from her lips. Her body tightened around him.

"I love you, Jim." His words, whispered into her ear sent her shattering into a million pieces, Bones followed right behind her. They shifted so that Bones was holding his weight off of her, "I'm sorry, darlin'." She looked at him and raised eyebrow. There was something about the way he said it. Bones moved to sit on the edge of the bed; Jamie didn't know what was going through his head. She moved to sit next to him, he started talking.

"When I got divorced, I swore that I wouldn't put myself out there like that again. I loved her; at least I thought I did. I was resolved with spending the rest of my life angry and alone, and then you showed up and tossed my whole existence on it's head. You're like nothing I've ever seen before, a mess of contradictions that shouldn't work but do. I couldn't figure out why this beautiful, brilliant and charming girl wanted to be friends with me. You never turned your back on me, even when I was an insufferable asshole. Eventually, I didn't want to function without you. Every time you came to me broken and bloody, it was like someone ripped out a piece of my heart. I didn't understand why you kept sticking your neck out for people until Trip called me a dumbass and explained. I know a lot of messed up shit happened to you but it never crossed my mind that you didn't feel like you're worth it. I never considered that you thought people wasted their lives by dying to protect you."

Bones paused long enough to find and put on his jeans, "Uhura smacked me in the head today when you left the exam room. She told me that what Lartal said to you didn't really bother you, that you were more pissed that he said it about her. She also said that I dropped the ball if my girlfriend didn't think she mattered enough to protect her own honor." Jamie nodded. She was used to insults, but Uhura was too good of a person for anyone to say something like that to her.

"It made me think about what Trip said and about the last few months. I've been so wrapped up that I'm never here and when I am, I'm researching or sleeping. I've been taking you for granted. You are worth so much, Jim. You're everything." Jamie could feel her heart thumping in her chest.

"If you're breaking up with me, just fucking do it," she whispered. Bones shook his head and went to the closet. He pulled something out that Jamie couldn't see. She looked around for clothes, at the very least, she was getting dressed before she got dumped. He handed her his Ole' Miss shirt and laughed. "What are you waiting for, Leonard?"

Bones shook his head and handed her the small object, "Now, who's the dumbass? I'm not breaking up with you. I… I told myself a million and three times that I would never, ever do this again but you have a way of making me see everything differently. There are a lot of things that I can live without, you aren't one of them. Jamie Kirk, I have loved you from the minute I met you and I will love you until my heart stops beating. I'm not perfect, but you never seemed to mind. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?"


	39. Well, Say Something

"Well, say something," Bones said to her. Jamie was at a real loss for words. She didn't know what to say... well she kinda did.

"But you… but I… Bones…" Maybe she didn't know what to say and that ridiculous grin on Bones' face wasn't helping.

"I didn't think it was possible for you to be speechless. Jim, look at me." She didn't; she kept looking at the box in her hands that she still hadn't opened. Bones stepped closer to her, brushed the bangs out of her eyes and tilted her head so that she was looking at him. "Will you marry me, darlin'?"

"Yes," it came out as a whisper but he heard her because he kissed her.

"Open it. You want me to do the whole knee thing?" She shook her head and opened the box; she's seen this ring before.

Jamie looked at him, "This…"

"… is mama's ring. She gave it to me for you. She wouldn't let Jocelyn have it, promised Joanna would get it if I didn't give it to you. Donna's got grandma's ring," he told her as he took the ring out of the box and slid it onto her finger. It was a perfect fit. Jamie stared at her hand, Bones chuckled, "It looks good on you."

It was a simple ring, sort of; it was a one carat, radiant cut blue diamond on a platinum band. Jamie realized that it suited Mama Ella but it also worked for her; it matched her eyes and Bones' service uniforms. She looked up at him.

"I should kick you. I thought you were going to dump me. How long have you been planning this?"

He shook his head, "Other than Jo, you're the best thing in my life, I'm not going anywhere. I'm sorry I've been dumb lately. I'm a lot of things, dumb isn't one of them. And I wasn't planning it. Mama gave me the ring last time we went home. She told me life was too short and sometimes, the right time to do something may never come, so don't wait." Mama Ella was a woman after her own heart.

"Gaila is gonna kill us if we get married before her," she muttered. Gaila and Gary getting engaged wasn't as unexpected as it should've been. Their green friend and her fiance decided to tie the knot at Christmas since Farragut was heading out a few days after Bones' birthday, and Gary was a helmsman on the ship. Jamie was assigned to go with them on a training cruise. For some reason, she wasn't as excited about as she was a few days ago.

"You sure you want to be stuck with me forever?" Jamie asked, that feeling of inadequacy dancing in her chest. Bones pulled her body against his and kissed her.

"Never been more sure." Bones spent the rest of the night showing her just how sure he was.

* * *

Jamie reported to babysitting duty the next morning, after making a stop. She managed to get Ard alone on his way from a workout. He didn't even realize what happened until she tagged him. The large Orion laughed as he gave her his target, "Taken down by a human woman. I gotta work on my observation skills."

She met Chief Hard-Ass outside the Varkolak's guest quarters. "Ah, Cadet Kirk, you're here," Lartal glared at the Chief. "Leave us." The chief glanced at her and left the room.

"I'm here as requested, or ordered depending on how you look at it," she told him honestly.

"You would rather be with your mate. I can smell him on you, his claim is very thorough."

Jamie smirked, "Yes, it is."

The Varkolak barked a laugh, "I don't like your chief, he reeks of fear." Jamie didn't like the guy either and she told Lartal as much. "You know most humans wouldn't agree to be in a room with us after the fight we had yesterday but you aren't even a little scared of us. Other than your mate, I smell amusement and an Orion."

She nodded, "I don't mind a good fight. The Orion is a classmate I ran into before I got here, big guy named Ard. We're gonna spar with each other when everything settles down. And I am amused; the chief doesn't seem to like either of us."

Lartal nodded, picked up a Varkolak tricorder –which the Federation scientists were chomping at the bit to get their hands on- and clipped it to his belt. He looked at her, "I am ready to leave." Jamie nodded, she was given his itinerary, but she was also given the authority to deviate, good thing too. Lartal didn't want to tour the medical faculties, he wanted to tour the campus. Jamie smiled; she spent enough time in medical. Lartal ordered his guards to stay where they were; Jamie was glad Barnett gave her two security officers.

The tour around campus turned into a trip to Golden Gate Park. Jamie loved this place, she and Bones spent a lot of time here and it was one of their favorite places in San Francisco. Of course, their trip to the park didn't last long, Lartal wanted to see the city. She and the officers glanced at each other and checked for the next ferry.

* * *

"Bonesy, you home?" She walked into their apartment after playing tour guide to Lartal. Bones yelled that he was in the bedroom. Jamie walked into the room to find him lounging on the bed; he sat his PADD down and looked at her.

"Hey, darlin', have fun?" She rolled her eyes and pulled off her boots.

"Nope. And I'm not even close to done. The summit starts tomorrow."

He chuckled and walked over to her, "Want some help?" Jamie smiled and nodded. Bones unfastened her uniform jacket and slid it off her shoulders.'

"So interesting fact: I smell like you today," she told him. Bones raised an eyebrow. "Think about it doctor. He said that your claim was thorough." Realization dawned on his face and he burst into laughter.

"He sniffed you?" Jamie nodded and laughed with him. Bones pulled her into his arms once she got the uniform off, "Well, he's not wrong. My claim is very thorough." He kissed her neck, "You know, you need to comm Sam."

She chuckled, "I guess I better put on a shirt, at least." Jamie put on a shirt –Bones' shirt- and grabbed her PADD. She punched in the info for her brother and was connected within a minute.

"Hey, sis. Hi Bones," her brother said.

Jamie chuckled, "You know, you get better reception on Deneva that you did on Genjitsu." He nodded. Sam and Aury took jobs at a Federation colony and moved to Deneva a month ago.

"Yea, I know. So, what's up?"

She smiled, "Can't a girl comm her brother without it being a thing?"

Sam and Bones both said, "No."

"I'm at work, so I don't have tons of time, spill," Sam had a smirk on his face. She glanced at Bones and then back at her brother.

"You know already, don't you?" she asked.

Sam smiled, "He asked us for permission." Us? She'll ask Bones later. "Let me see it?" Jamie held up her hand.

"Wait 'til I tell Aury. She might just plan the wedding for you."

Jamie shook her head, "No… I haven't figured that out, let me enjoy being engaged. Please and thank you."

Her brother nodded, "Well go, I remember when I first got engaged. Just keep the details to yourselves and nobody gets hurt. I love you guys, congratulations." Sam cut the connection from his end.

"Who is this 'us' he was referring to?"

Bones smirked, "As far as Sam knows, just him and Pike. But I got a chance to talk to Trip. He laughed at me until he realized that I was serious, then he told me that if I hurt you, I'd be dead before I realized it. He told me that he'd comm you himself when he got the chance." Jamie chuckled, that was like Trip. She didn't talk to Pike yet, she sent him a message that she had good news but she didn't say what. He was on a training cruise, he'll get around to answering when he had time.

Jamie sat her PADD on top of his and hopped off the bed, "I'm gonna take a shower, does my fiancé want to join me?" Bones smiled and followed her.

"I like the sound of that, your fiancé."


	40. Can You Hear Me?

"Can you hear me?" Jamie blinked a few times and looked at him, her head hurt, her ears were ringing and she only knew what he said was because she could read his lips.

"No, I can't hear anything, my ears…" Bones looked at her and cupped her cheek. There was nothing he could do for her out here. "Go, Bones. Go help Sulu." He looked around and then at her, she knew he wasn't sure what to do.

Lartal spoke to him from next to her, "Go, she will be safe with us on my honor as a Varkolak warrior." At least that's what she thought he said. Bones gave her a quick kiss before he ran to help with everyone on the President's shuttle. The medical summit started with a bang, literally.

Their favorite pilot was chosen to fly the President of the United Federation of Planets to the opening ceremonies. Everything was going alright until the shuttle touched down and there was an explosion. Jamie knew that Bones will fix her ears later if they don't fix themselves but she had no idea how bad Sulu was. Jamie didn't get a chance to think about any of it when the shooting started. She pulled Lartal to the ground just in time for one of his guards to get hit.

"Ard!" The Orion classmate that Jamie 'killed' in the game went down a few feet in front of them.

Cover, they needed to find cover. She spotted Brax shielding Gaila; he was bleeding badly. She motioned to Gaila who nudged their friend to head in the same direction that Jamie was going. She scanned the area for Uhura and spotted the linguist with Spock; he wouldn't let anything happen to her. Jamie knew she should be worried about Bones, but she also knew that he was safer with the President. Jamie was thanking her lucky stars that Chekov and Kelso went off planet this morning and Kevin wasn't a fourth year so he had to go to class.

Jamie spotted the door to the conference room and nudged Lartal, "There." He nodded, both he and his remaining guard followed her into a building, Jamie and Lartal pulled officers and cadets along with them. The group entered the room, and a group of armed humans swarmed them.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Jamie asked them; at least her hearing was coming back.

The leader of the group looked over her shoulder at the two Varkolak, "Them." Some of the people they saved stepped aside but there were some who stood fast with Jamie in front of Lartal and his guard. Freeman was among them, he stood next to Jamie.

"No, you'll have to kill us all to get to them," she told them.

"They're monsters!" the leader yelled at her. Jamie knew she had to keep them talking. When she was assigned to escort Lartal around, Barnett gave her an emergency tracker. She activated it on their way into the room; backup was incoming.

 "They didn't just blow up the President's shuttle and shoot up a medical summit, they aren't the monsters here, you are. Varkolak fight honorable battles, they're warriors. You ambushed a bunch of doctors and students," she told him. All that time with Lartal actually paid off. Even though Lartal was a doctor himself, he was an alpha male of his species and he told her a bit about their culture; everyone fights, some better than others but there were lines you don't cross. Healers and children were off limits unless they specifically challenge you.

"You wouldn't understand, Kirk. Move aside," the man told her, stepping closer to her with his weapon pointed at her chest.

She laughed, "The worst things that ever happened to me were done by humans. I have been starved, tortured, shot and whole bunch of other crap. You wanna know what I learned? That you have a choice in how you deal with things, might not like the choice you get but you still have one. You can end this now before more people get hurt, before more innocent people die. Or you can kill me, because _I'M. NOT. MOVING_."

Just as the last word came out of her mouth, the room was flooded with security; Freeman let out the breath he was holding. The leader of the terrorist group –because that's what they were- sat his weapon down and put his hands up, his team did the same.

"You risked your lives for us?" Lartal asked from behind her.

Jamie shrugged, "It's what I do. Usually they don't stand down so easily, though."

Lartal barked a laugh, "You were prepared to fight."

"Always." She knelt down near the medic working on Brax, "You alright, buddy?" He nodded, "I've had worse, I'm worried about Sulu, McCoy and Uhura, though." Jamie relayed the little bit of information she had before he was taken to medical.

* * *

The security team, which now included Jamie, Gaila and Lieutenant Freeman, escorted Lartal to different guest quarters. Even though she was a cadet, she was the one assigned to Lartal, so she was the one calling the shots. Jamie took five of them inside to do a sweep of the room before she let Lartal enter it. The whole place was under lockdown so Jamie and the security team split into two groups of five; one would rest while the other kept watch.

Barnett arrived a few hours later when the sun was beginning to set, to discuss the future of the summit. Lartal agreed to continue, he wasn't going to let cowards stop him. After they concluded the conversation, Barnett pulled Jamie aside.

"Nice job, Kirk. This could've ended a lot worse. You kept Lartal alive and saved the Federation from what could've turned into a war." He also told her that he was proud of her and he wasn't alone. Despite what people thought of the Varkolak, they were there as guests and she put her life on the line to protect them. Jamie nodded and asked about the people on the shuttle. "Doctors Griffin and McCoy got everyone out with the help of some security officers, they're all banged up but they'll live to talk about it. Sulu is in the hospital but he's fine." Jamie nodded; her squad was accounted for. "Go home, Kirk." She nodded. After telling Lartal that she'd see him the next day and briefing her relief, she left.

* * *

 

Jamie walked into her apartment to find someone sitting on her couch. She sighed, "This is the last place you should be... but you know that."

"The group you encountered was a team of Redux members, I was trailing them. I figured out what they were going to do, but I was too late. Heard you had an adventurous day. You alright?" Jamie nodded and sat down next to Trip. He looked at her, "How's your doctor? It seems that congratulations are in order." He took her hand and looked at her ring.

She smiled, "He's helping at medical, Brax and Sulu are among the injured. And yes, congratulations are welcome. He told me you laughed at him."

"I honestly didn't know what to think. I was flattered that he thought I was worth asking." He paused, "or maybe I was hoping you'd marry me one day." Jamie laughed as his communicator beeped. Trip read the message before he looked at her, "If I can be there, I will be. I gotta go." He kissed the top of her head, "Watch your six, little one."

"Always do." His visit was short but the timing was perfect.

Jamie decided to get off the couch, she walked into the bedroom that she shared with Bones and collapsed on the bed, still in uniform.

* * *

"Jim." Jamie blinked her eyes open, Bones was pulling her boots off.

"Time?" she asked, it had to be late.

He unzipped her uniform jacket, "Oh-three hundred." Before she could ask, he told her about their friends. "Brax needed surgery but he'll be fine. Sulu isn't gonna be allowed to fly or fence for a little bit but he's okay." That was good news. He pulled the uniform off her body and made Jamie scoot over. Bones laid down next to her, pulled the covers over them both and pulled her into his arms. "I'm glad you're alright, darlin'. I love you."

Jamie smiled against his chest, "I love you, too."


	41. I Hate Weddings

"I hate weddings," he groaned. Jamie laughed and kissed the corner of his mouth.

"Should I be offended by that? I mean, we are engaged."

He looked at her and smiled, "I don't hate all weddings, just these big weddings with a ton of people. I didn't know that Gaila knew so many people. Jocelyn had the whole town and then some at our wedding. I just think it should be about the couple, not about all the extra stuff." Jamie understood that, it was part of the reason she didn't plan theirs yet, she considered eloping but their families would kill them.

They were dancing –yes, dancing- at Gary and Gaila's wedding reception in New York City. Jamie was happy that the medical summit continued without any more attacks and she seemed to have left a good impression about the Federation with Lartal, who had a lot of pull with his people. Mitchell's family welcomed the group with open arms and Jamie was sure that most of the people at the wedding were with Gary. Gaila didn't have any family except their little group.

The Orion's past was about as bad as Jamie's, the slave trade was no joke and the only ways out are death, escape or to buy out your contract at thirty-fice, if you can. Jamie and Nyota stood with Gaila as bridesmaids. She explained that on Orion, the task is called 'standing with your sister' and she was glad that she still got to have that with her human sisters.

"What would your dream wedding be, Bones?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow, "I'm supposed to be asking you that."

Jamie shook her head, "Never was one of those girls that dreamed about their wedding, never thought I'd live long enough or find someone who would want to put up with me for that long."

He smirked, "Guess it's a good thing we found each other when we did." Before she could say anything, Uhura was pulling Jamie away from him.

"We'll give her back in a few minutes, Leonard," the young woman from Kenya told him. Jamie and Nyota joined the growing group of unwed women as they got ready for Gaila to throw the bouquet.

"Are we really doing this?" she asked. Some of the other women laughed and one of them nudged her.

"Not ready to get married, huh?" the girl asked.

Jamie held up her hand, "Already engaged, actually."

Jamie couldn't believe that Gaila and Gary went this old school/traditional for their wedding. Jamie _was_ glad that Gaila didn't bother with the whole 'ugly bridesmaid dress' thing that a lot of brides still do; the sparkly pale-silver worked on her, Uhura and Gary's sister, Gina. The guys were either in suits or uniforms. She also took joy in the fact that Gaila and Gary decided not to get married on Christmas, they changed the date to December nineteenth.

"Okay ladies and gents, here goes." Gaila turned and tossed the flowers over her shoulder. Uhura caught them and Jamie burst into laughter when Kelso told Spock that the tradition meant that she was supposed to be the next one to get married. Jamie smiled at them; most people can't read Spock but she could tell that the half-Vulcan was smitten. Who knows, maybe they will get married first. There was no way that Jamie was doing all of this for her wedding, it just wasn't her style or Bones'.

"You didn't catch it on purpose," Bones said as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I can't confirm or deny that, sweetheart. I don't think elbowing Gary's cousins would've been very nice."

He chuckled, "I saw that, she got you pretty good. I guess it's a good thing that you have a doctor wrapped around your finger."

Jamie smirked, "This is true."

"Jamie, Jamie," Chekov came barreling up to them.

She loved this kid, "Yea, Pasha?"

He looked at her, then Bones, "Can I… May I have zhis dance?"

Jamie smiled and nodded, "Sure." She gave Bones a quick kiss and left to dance with her young friend.

Chekov was the beginning of a chain reaction; she managed to dance with all of Blue Squad –including Gaila and Uhura- and with Kevin, Scotty and even Spock. The science officer found the whole thing to 'interesting' as he'd never been to a human wedding before. When the night finally ended, the group split up. Jamie knew that most of them would stay in New York for a few days but she and Bones changed their clothes and went home to Georgia. Hmm, home.

* * *

Surprisingly, Mama Ella was awake when they walked into the house. It was really early in the morning and Jamie didn't need to be a genius to know that something was up. Ella was sitting in the kitchen with Fred, sipping a cup of tea.

"Mama, what's wrong?" Bones asked. The older woman looked up at them but didn't say anything, she just nodded towards the stairs.

Fred looked at Bones, "He wants to see you. Don's already up there." Jamie realized that Joanna was sleeping on the couch next to Bones' Uncle Jackson.

"He's dying, isn't he?" Jamie asked.

Fred nodded and pulled out a chair for her, "Yea." Jamie sat down and didn't say anything. Fred reached over and took her hand, he'd been holding Mama Ella up but he's known David his whole life and Jamie could only imagine what he was feeling.

What was she supposed to do, to say? She knew what they felt but at the same time, she didn't. Her whole life was defined by her father's death. She was compared to him, blamed for what happened to him and told she wasn't good enough to carry his name. There are so many things that would've been different in her life if George had lived. Jamie could count on her hands the number of people who offered her condolences, even less who told her that she wasn't to blame. Jamie doesn't know how long they all sat there when Bones and Donna came downstairs. Her fiancé's sister looked at her and Fred.

"He wants to see you two, Fred first." They looked at each other before the pair walked up the stairs.

"Hey old man," she heard Fred greet him and then nothing for a few minutes. When Fred came out of the room, he had tears in his eyes. Jamie gave him a hug before she entered the room. She smiled, sat down next to David McCoy and took his hand.

"Hey doc, looking good," she told him.

He smiled at her, "Liar. That looks good on you." He touched her ring with his finger, "Always knew you were just what Leo needed. He was convinced that he'd be alone for the rest of his life but I knew from the moment I met you that he was never gonna be the same. You're something special, Jim, don't ever forget that. That son of mine is stubborn, don't let him push you away, he'll try to."

Jamie nodded, "He can't get rid of me that easy,"

David smiled at her, "Take care of him for me."

"I will, David, I promise," she told him. David closed his eyes and smiled, then his equipment started beeping, "BONES!" The whole family swarmed.

"What happened?" someone asked.

She shook her head, "Nothing. He told me to take care of you and when I said I would, he closed his eyes then it all went crazy." Bones was doing anything he could think of to fix it, his mom, sister and brother-in-law standing next to Jamie. Jackson touched Bones' shoulder.

"Leo, stop. Stop," his uncle told him. Jamie wrapped her arms around him while his Jackson pulled David to his chest and kissed his head.

On December twentieth, 2257 at zero-five-seventeen, David Andrew McCoy died in his younger brother's arms.


	42. You Should Go, Jim

"You should go, Jim," Bones muttered.

She looked at him, "Is that… You want me to leave?"

He shook his head, "No. No, I don't, but you don't have much choice. The fleet wants to make a big deal out of your birthday this year and you have to be there."

Jamie sighed, "I know. I just don't want to go. It's not like they can't do it without me. Wouldn't be the first time." Bones looked at her from his spot on the porch swing.

"Yea, they probably could but we both know they won't. Twenty-five is a nice round number for them to make a big fuss over, and now they can take pictures of you in uniform. Given the explosion at the conference, they need a distraction and you're it. I guess they also figured that if George can come in from Deneva, there's no reason for you not to be there. Go, I won't fall apart without you for a few days. You have to go back to class anyway." Jamie raised an eyebrow.

"Are you sure, Bones?" He nodded but she saw right threw him. He didn't want her to go and Jamie was sure that he needed her to stuck around but he was putting on a brave face.

David's funeral was two days before Christmas and it was hard for everyone. Jamie and Fred did the best they could to keep Bones' family functioning but the two of them were getting worn down. Jamie was surprised when her brother, Pike, Kevin and Uhura showed up on Christmas to distract everyone. Sam –even though Aurelan couldn't come with him- bumped up his visit, Pike brought Kevin and Uhura when they refused to just sit around. They even had to convince Gaila and Gary not to cut their honeymoon short. Jamie called them all crazy for spending their winter break with them instead of their families but she was thankful that they were there at the same time.

Jamie and Bones went inside to find Sam sitting on the floor with Joanna singing songs from Frozen, also known as 'the movie that doesn't die' even when it's over two hundred and forty-five years old and was remade a few times. That little girl was like a breath of fresh air, she kept spirits up. Joanna did a better job at forcing Bones and Donna to interact with people than anyone else did. Jamie loved that little girl something fierce.

"We gotta go, Sam," she said to her brother, who pouted and got off the floor. Pike, being Pike, was flying them back to San Francisco. Bones was on bereavement leave but Jamie, Kevin and Uhura had orders to go back; Barnett couldn't give them anymore time. Jamie was going to attempt to come back before her training cruise started; the date was bumped up to the twelfth instead of the twenty-third of January. There was a round of farewells before the group heading to the academy left. Joanna promised to keep an eye on her dad. Pike reminded Bones that his research could still be helpful to someone and once he thought about it, he would agree. They left Georgia shortly after that.

* * *

This is the last thing she wanted to do for her birthday, at least she got to spend the morning with her big brother. Front row center, that's where they put the Kirk siblings. Jamie and Sam were on one side of the aisle and there were admirals on the other side. Blue Squad, Kevin, Spock and Scotty were sitting behind them; Barnett or Pike's doing if she had to guess. The whole thing was about to start when she felt someone sit next to her in Pike's seat.

"Sir… Bones, what are you doing here?"

He smiled, "Didn't think I'd really let you do this without me, did you?"

She could feel the tears forming in her eyes, "But your family…"

"You're my family too, darlin'." Damn, she swore that she wasn't going to cry at this thing.

"I talked to you a few hours ago, you were still in Georgia. How'd you get here so fast?"

"Transporter. I know the right people." Jamie laughed. Bones hated being beamed anywhere. She didn't have to guess what he meant by knowing the right people, it was code for Trip.

"He's hiding around here somewhere, right?"

Bones nodded, "Yep. It's a good thing Jo said something when she did." Jamie raised an eyebrow as he continued. "Joanna, my sweet, beautiful little Joanna, kicked me in the shin and told me that I was crazy for letting you leave without me. Said that you just spent weeks taking care of me after dad and that it was my job to take care of you. I swear she gets that from you." The running joke was that while Joanna looked like her parents, she acted more like Jamie. Sam had to do a double take the first couple of times he interacted with the little girl, " _Is there any chance at all that she's yours? I swear she's you at that age._ " Jamie just smiled as Bones took her hand. Pike took the seat next to him and the ceremony began.

Jamie hated these things. A bunch of people who didn't know anymore about George than she did, making speeches about him and his service to the Federation. Jamie looked at Sam, most people wouldn't be able to tell but she could read her brother like a book and he was pissed. At some point, he leaned over and whispered, " _Dad would hate this shit_." Apparently, her disdain for pomp and circumstance was genetic because Jamie and Sam both had the same feelings about this; George wouldn't want the attention. She may not know a lot about her dad but that is one thing she does know.

The only thing worse than the ceremony, was the reception afterwards. Seriously, they needed a reception? She put on her best fake smile and interacted with people who didn't know her, or anything about her, in her face talking about her dad. She, Bones and Sam sat together and with the exception of Archer, Reed, Barnett and Pike, they only held short and polite conversations with people. Jamie was already itching to leave when a reporter started grilling her, it was the last straw; she repeated the phrase 'no comment' about a million times until Pike -also known as her favorite captain in the known universe- got between them and had the reporter removed.

"Nothing he said was true, Jim. You aren't in Starfleet because of George and you know it," Bones looked at her and Jamie nodded.

"Get out of here, kid," Pike told her.

Jamie looked at Pike, "Sir?"

He glanced over her shoulder, "I'll cover for you guys. Get out of here. Go do something fun, it's still your birthday." Jamie, Bones and Sam took less than a second to think about it before they slipped out of the room. The trio was trying to decide what they were going to do with the rest of the dad when they heard Sulu's voice from behind them.

"So, how about a real birthday for our fearless leader?"


	43. You've Gotta Be Kidding

"You've got to be kidding," he told her as they left the Mayweather building.

"But Bones… doesn't it bother you that nobody has ever beat the test?"

He rolled his eyes, "It's the Kobayashi Maru. Nobody ever beats it, let alone goes back for seconds or thirds."

The Kobayashi Maru scenario is a no-win test that command-track cadets take. The claim is that it's used to make an assessment of a cadet's discipline, character and command capabilities when facing an impossible situation, there's no real solution and Jamie just couldn't let that fly. She took the test twice already and failed it twice but this time she had an idea.

Jamie looked at her fiancé, "I not exactly like everybody else, but you know that. I don't believe in no-win situations… hell, my whole life has been an exercise in surviving impossible shit. Please, Bonesy, it's tomorrow morning and I want you to be there. I could beg but you'll do what I want anyway because you love me and because I do that thing with my tongue that you like." Jamie looked at him and watched the smile cross his features, she had him and he knew it.

"You're gonna be the death of me. Fine, I'll be there," he told her begrudgingly.

Jamie smiled, "I will see you later, I gotta talk to Gaila." She gave him a kiss and jogged towards Hernandez Hall.

After her birthday trip to Disneymoon –yea, her friends rock- things at the academy ramped up. After months of playing, Sulu finally won the assassination game; she can't believe that they were the last two and that he 'killed' her but she thought it was better him than someone else. Officially, Jamie was done taking credits and spent the last months taking tests, working on getting the Enterprise in orbit –it's currently at Starbase One- and racking up hours on short tours on different ships; Bones even went on a few himself. Jamie and Gary had a close call on the Farragut and a bunch of people died. Fortunately, the pair saved the ship and the captain was impressed, Jamie heard that he tried to get her for tactical on his ship but Pike beat him to it.

Jamie sat with Gaila and went over the feasibility of her plan, "You're really gonna do this?" the Orion asked.

Jamie nodded, "It's not unbeatable, I know it's not. I just have to do it the right way."

Gaila had moved into the same building as Jamie and Bones since she got married. Uhura hated her new roommate, so she often popped in at Gaila and Gary's apartment, usually when he was off planet.

"Hey guys." They both looked up at the linguist, who looked defeated,

"Ny, what's wrong?" Jamie asked as her friend sat down between them.

"I was in the long range sensor lab tracking solar systems and I picked up an emergency transmission." Jamie and Gaila waited for her to continue, "It was from a Klingon prison planet, one of their armadas was destroyed, forty-seven ships. I swear it was the Romulans. I tried to tell the officer overseeing the lab but he ignored me."

That's not good. Jamie thought about what that could mean for the Federation. Neither the Romulans or the Klingons were on the list of her favorite species but if she had to pick, at least the Klingons were about honor and respect.

"You tell Spock?" Gaila asked.

Uhura shook her head, "No, he's working on a project with his astrophysics class. I didn't want to bother him with this."

"Did you record it?" Jim asked. Uhura nodded and punched in the commands on her PADD. Jamie and Gaila listened to the recording and sure enough, it was the Klingons fighting against Romulans. Jamie would have to mention it to Pike in the morning, and she told Uhura as much.

"Thanks, Jamie," Ny said as she squeezed her hand.

"Anytime."

* * *

The next day, Jamie sat in the command chair of the 'USS Horizon', the simulated bridge used for the KM. "Captain, we're receiving a distress signal from the SS Kobayashi Maru. The ship has lost power and is stranded. Starfleet command has ordered us to rescue them." Jamie nodded at Uhura just as Bones spoke up from his spot at tactical.

"Two Klingon vessels have entered the neutral zone and are locking weapons on us," he told her.

In the current KM scenario, the cadet patrols the Klingon Neutral Zone when the ship receives a distress call from the Maru from inside the Neutral Zone. If the cadet attempts to aid the Maru, Klingon cruisers attack. The computer ensures that it is impossible for the cadet to save both the Maru passengers and their own ship.

"Bones, Kelso, you're gonna have to do exactly what I tell you," the doctor looked at her and nodded but didn't say anything as the bridge flickered. Jamie looked at him and smirked. She rattled off commands and the team on her 'bridge' got to work. "Okay, Bones. Fire now. Uhura alert medical and the transporter rooms, we're gonna start beaming people over." Evacuation of the other ship was underway as they kept the enemy ships distracted. Unfortunately, the Klingons were down but not out.

Uhura looked at her, "All the Maru's crew is onboard, Captain." Jamie looked at Kelso as the Klingons started firing.

"Get us outta here, helm."

Jamie stood up, "So, we aren't dead and the crew of the Kobayashi Maru is safely on-board the Horizon. I think it's safe to say we won." Jamie looked up into the observation window, Pike and Spock were among the officers there. She wasn't surprised to find an 'invitation' to Barnett's office before she even got of the building.

* * *

"Kirk, this is a preliminary evaluation before any official charges are brought forth. Do you have any questions before we begin?" Jamie looked at Barnett, he looked like he wanted to be anywhere else. In the room with them were Pike, Spock, and Commander Yin, the test's administrator.

"What exactly am I being charged with, sir?" she asked the admiral.

Barnett looked at her, "Evidence has been submitted suggesting that you violated the ethical code of conduct; that you somehow managed to install and activate a subroutine in the programming code, changing the conditions of the test. In academic vernacular, you cheated. Commander Yin, Lieutenant Commander Spock?"

Jamie looked at her half-Vulcan friend, "You? Spo… Sir, you know me. You honestly believe I cheated? Tell me which regulations I broke. Tell me what the subroutine actually did, sir."

Yin attempted to speak but Spock beat him to it, he looked at her, "There was no outright violation of any regulations. The subroutine eliminated the uneven parameters of the test, making the simulation realistic as opposed to unbeatable. Cadet Kirk still had to employ a feasible and decisive plan to complete the test." Jamie could tell that Yin was not happy, the commander spoke up.

"That's cheating," Yin growled.

Jamie looked at him, "No sir, it isn't. It was still within regs."

Pike smirked, "Thinking outside the box."

"I don't have a box, sir. I would've died a long time ago if I did." Pike and Barnett smiled at that. Jamie took a breath, "The test is a cheat within itself, it's designed to be unwinnable; a no-win scenario. The problem with that, especially for me, is that there's always a way and the last thing we want to do is teach new captains to give up before they begin."

Spock looked at her, "You failed to understand the principle lesson. You of all people should know, Cadet Kirk, that a captain cannot cheat death. Further more you have failed to define the purpose of the test. The purpose to experience fear, fear in the face of certain death. To accept that fear and maintain control of oneself and one's crew."

Jamie looked at him, "You mean because of my father, he the captain of a starship for twelve minutes, he saved eight hundred lives including mine. Despite what most people seem to think, he won, even in death. My mother made it, most of his crew made it and I'm still here, so he won. Commander Spock, you've seen me in action, you are well aware that I'm capable if maintaining control when the odds are against me. That test in an insult to someone like me. I've walked away from real no-win scenarios and sticking me in a simulator with a reset button is a slap in the face. You want to charge me, go for it but I didn't break any of the rules and I know fear better than anyone in this room. It's not the absence of fear that makes you a good leader, it's what you do in spite of that fear that counts."

Pike smiled at her and looked at the admiral, "She didn't violate any regulations, sir. And she does have a point, more than one, actually. Furthermore, Kirk is one of the best programmers at the academy; she could've done this without anyone noticing. She was obvious on purpose." At least Pike got it.

Apparently, so did Spock, "I must concur with the captain, sir."

Yin, not so much, "Of course, George Kirk's daughter is allowed to do what she wants." Jamie raised an eyebrow and looked at Barnett. The admiral looked at Yin.

"Please tell me that you didn't file charges because of who her father is, Commander. I understand why Spock would have an issue with how she took the test but you haven't said anything except to call her a cheater. She's at the top of her class, slated to graduate as a lieutenant commander. Do you have any idea of what you almost did? Stand fast, Yin." Jamie looked at Yin and shook her head.

"The 'Kirk curse' lives. Didn't I tell you, Captain? It's all about my name, heaven forbid I save the world or something," she muttered the last part. Pike gave her a sad smile.

Barnett looked at her, "After hearing your testimony, I will not forward charges, Cadet Kirk. You and Spock are free to go." They both stood at attention before leaving his office.

Bones, Uhura, Brax, Kelso and Gaila were waiting when they got outside. The Orion looked at her, "Well?"

Jamie shrugged, "I'm not in trouble and Yin is biased, I don't even want to know what Barnett is saying to him in there."

Spock looked at her, "Kirk, I…"

She held up her hand, "You were just doing your job. No big deal." Just as she said it, the campus-wide alarm sounded.


	44. What the Hell is That?

"What the hell is that?" Jamie took a breath and explained to Bones what was going on. The call-to-muster was only ever used twice since the Federation was founded. It was a call for all third and fourth year cadets to report for emergency commissioning and then to a ship.

Bones looked at Spock, "Sir, what does that mean?"

Spock looked at his PADD, "There is an emergency on Vulcan. With our primary fleet engaged in the Laurentian system, all the ships in the area are being dispatched; you will each be assigned a vessel. You must report to the shuttle bay, hanger one." The six cadets sprinted in that direction as they were ordered to do.

They got split up, Jamie wasn't shocked, just worried. Jamie, Bones, Uhura, Sulu, and Chekov were on the Enterprise. Brax and Kelso were going to the Farragut with Gary. Gaila and Kevin were on the Hood. Jamie saw that Thanas guy, he was going on the Hood too.

"Hey, Thanas."

He looked at her, "What do you need, Kirk." This wasn't the arrogant ass they were all used too, he was all business today. She glanced at her green sister and the kid who was always her baby brother.

"Can you keep an eye on Mitchell and Riley for me? I know I have no real right to ask…"

"But they're your friends. I'll won't let anything happen to them. Be safe out there, Kirk."

She smiled, "You too Thanas. And thanks." He nodded and got on his shuttle. After a round of 'be careful' and 'don't do anything stupid' they all went to their designated shuttles. Jamie had this feeling like they all weren't walking away from this.

"It's just a rescue mission, Jim," Bones tried to convince her but she could tell that he didn't even believe that. He tapped her hand when they neared the starbase. "Jim, look. You did that?" Jamie looked out the window and smiled.

"Well, I helped. She's beautiful, isn't she?" Jamie asked. He nodded.

* * *

Pike grabbed her right as she came out of her assigned quarters in the command gold dress, "Kirk."

Pike must've just changed uniforms too. "Sir."

They stood next to each other in the turbolift, "I don't know if they told you on the ground but I named you as the ship's second officer."

Jamie looked at him, "People aren't gonna like that, sir." He smiled, "My ship, my officers, my assignments. You more than earned it." They stepped on the bridge and Pike went right into command-mode. "Mr. Spock, status?"

"Captain, Mister Scott reports that engineering is ready for launch," Spock informed him.

"Thank you, Mister Spock. Ladies and gentlemen, the maiden voyage of our newest flagship deserves more pomp and circumstance than we can afford today. The christening will just have to be our reward for a safe return home. Carry on." Pike sat in the command chair and opened the ship-wide intercom, "All decks, this is Captain Pike. Prepare for immediate departure." He closed the intercom and looked at Sulu, "Helm, thrusters?"

Her friend nodded, "Thrusters fired. Separating from space dock… The fleet's cleared space dock, captain. All ships ready for warp, sir."

Pike looked at Chekov, "Set course for Vulcan."

The young Russian's hands flew over the console, "Aye-aye, Keptin. Course laid in."

Pike smiled, "Maximum warp. Punch it." Nothing happened. "Mister Sulu, I know you're a good pilot. What's the problem?" Jamie looked at Sulu, he looked like he was lost, she decided to help him out.

"It's the external inertial dampener," she told him from the tactical console on his left. Sulu mouthed a 'thanks Jamie,' and punched the disengage sequence into the console.

"Ready for warp, sir," Sulu informed the captain. Pike looked like he wanted to laugh.

"Let's punch it," he ordered. The ship launched into warp towards Vulcan.

They were traveling for almost an hour before Pike looked at Chekov, "Russian whiz kid, begin ship wide mission broadcast."

Chekov nodded, "Yes, sir. Happy to." Jamie listened as he tried to log into the system, "Ensign authorization code nine-fiwe-Wictor-Wictor-two." Jamie kept the chuckles to herself but some of the other officers didn't when the system told him that his authorization wasn't recognized. He had more success on his second try, "Ensign authorization code nine-five-Victor-Victor-two." He took a breath and spoke to all hands, "May I have your attention please. Two hours ago, sensors near Wulcan reported an anomaly; vhat appeared to be a lightning storm in space. Soon after zhat, Starfleet received a distress signal from the Wulcan High Command that their planet was experiencing seismic activity. Our mission is to assess the condition of Wulcan and assist in ewacuations if necessary. Ve should be arriving at Wulcan vithin six minutes. Zhank you for your time."

No! No, no, no, no, no. Lightning storm. Lightning storm in space. Kelvin. Klingons attacked. Kelvin was near Klingon space. Romulans. It was an attack by Romulans. Kelvin, this was just like the Kelvin. Jamie was piecing the puzzle together in her head; she didn't hear Pike call her name the first few times.

"Lieutenant Commander Kirk."

She looked at him, "Sir, sorry sir."

Pike looked at her, "Is everything okay, Jim?"

She shook her head, "This isn't a rescue mission, sir…. I think… I think Vulcan is under attack by Romulans." Everyone on the bridge looked at her like she was crazy just as Bones walked onto the bridge, apparently, someone called medical. She glanced at him then back at Pike, "This is a trap… We're warping into a trap." Before Pike could ask her what she meant, Spock stepped up.

"Based on what facts?" the first officer asked.

"The anomaly we're tracking today, the lightning storm in space, also occurred on the day of my birth when the USS Kelvin was attacked by Romulans. You know that, Captain. It's in your dissertation. That ship, which had formidable and advanced weaponry hasn't been seen or heard from in twenty-five years. The Kelvin attack took place on the edge of Klingon space. At twenty-three hundred hours last night, there was an attack, forty-seven Klingon vessels were destroyed by Romulans, sir. And it was reported that the Romulans were in one ship, one massive ship. The pieces fit… this… this is an attack."

"And you know of this Klingon attack how?" Pike asked her.

She looked at him, "Uhura intercepted and translated the message herself, sir. She recorded it I had no choice but to agree with her conclusion after I listened to it. I meant to tell you about it today but Admiral Barnett needed to see us. It was clearly the Klingons getting obliterated by a Romulan ship. We're warping into a trap, sir. The Romulans are waiting for us at Vulcan."

Spock looked at her, than at Pike, "Lieutenant Commander Kirk's logic is sound. And Lieutenant Uhura is unmatched in xenolinguistics, accepting her conclusion would be wise, sir." Pike took in what they were telling him, he looked at the guy at the communications console.

"Hawkins, scan Vulcan space. Check for any transmissions in Romulan," Pike ordered.

"Sir, I'm not sure I can distinguish the Romulan language from Vulcan," Hawkins told him. You've got to be kidding. How the hell does a communications officer not know the difference between two of the most important languages in the galaxy? Pike must have been thinking the same thing.

"Call Uhura up here. Kirk, help him out until she gets here. Your Romulan is pretty good last time I checked," Pike ordered her.

She nodded, "Yes, sir." Jamie crossed the bridge and worked with Hawkins until Uhura got there a minute later; Jamie filled her in. Pike, Spock and Jamie knew that Romulan was Uhura's passion, not only did she speak it but she spoke all three dialects, the captain ordered her to relieve Hawkins. Jamie returned to the tactical console.

 _"_ Hannity, hail the USS Truman," Pike told the officer.

She punched in some commands, "All the other ships are out of warp sir and have arrived at Vulcan, but we seem to have lost all contact."

Uhura spoke up from her station, "Sir, I pick up no Romulan transmission... or transmission of any kind in the area."

Jamie glanced at Pike, "Sir, they're being attacked." She was hoping that he was listening to his guts, he knew something was up, it was written on his face.

Pike sat down in the, "Shields up. Red alert."

After a moment of silence, Chekov spoke, "Arrival at Wulcan in five seconds… 4… 3… 2…"

"Holy… Emergency evasive maneuvers Mister Sulu," Pike ordered from his chair.

Sulu's hands were flying over the controls, "Running, sir."

Pike looked at her, "Damage report." Jamie scanned the information in front of her.

"Deflector shields are holding, sir," she told him. Other officers rattled off the status of their sections.

Pike was giving Sulu orders, "Full reverse. Come about starboard, ninety degrees. Drop us down underneath them, Sulu." Pike was referring to a huge chuck of the Mayflower that they just flew beneath; Jamie didn't want to think about the other ships.

"Dear God," Jamie heard Bones whisper from where he was standing, next to Spock's station, holding on to the railing behind Pike.

"Sir, they're locking torpedoes," she warned the captain.

He nodded, "Divert auxiliary power from the port nacelles to forward shields. And give me a status."

Jamie did as instructed, "Shield at thirty-two percent. Shit, we just lost a section of deck six. Those weapons are powerful, sir. We can't take another hit like that."

Pike turned in his chair, "Uhura, get me Starfleet Command."

"Captain, the Romulan ship has lowered some kind of high energy pulse device into the planet's atmosphere. It's signal appears to be blocking our communications and transporter abilities," Spock notified them from the science station.

Pike nodded, "Kirk, all power to forward shields. Prepare to fire all weapons."

It was like second nature to Jamie, "On it sir."


	45. Is That...?

"Is that…?" The enemy ship hailed them. Jamie could hear Bones but she was too focused on the man on-screen.

Pike addressed him, "I'm Captain Christopher Pike of the Enterprise. To whom am I speaking?"

The Romulan looked smug, "Hi Christopher. I'm Nero."

Nero. The man who has hunted her nightmares since she figured out who he was. The man responsible for her father's death. The man who shaped her life from the very first moments of it. Pike must've known what she was thinking because he looked at her before looked back at the screen.

"You've declared war against the Federation. Withdraw and I'll agree to arrange a conference with Romulan leadership at a neutral location..." Pike told him.

Nero looked at Pike, "I do not speak for the Empire. We stand apart. As does your Vulcan crew member. Isn't that right, Spock?" Huh? What the hell did they want with Spock. He was the most logical and honest person she knew.

Spock stepped forward, "Pardon me, I do not believe that you and I are acquainted." Nero glared –yes, glared- at Spock.

"No, we're not. Not yet. Spock, there's something I would like you to see. Captain Pike, your transporter has been disabled. As you can see by the rest of your armada, you have no choice. You will man a shuttle and come aboard the Narada for negotiations. That is all," the Romulan told them. There was silence on the bridge of the Enterprise after the transmission cut out. Jamie took a deep breath and stood from her seat.

"Sir, they'll kill you. You know that," she told Pike.

Spock walked over to stand next to her, "Your survival is unlikely."

"We gain nothing by diplomacy. Going over to that ship is a mistake. It's suicide," she told the man who spent the last decade looking out for her.

Spock backed her up, "I agree with Kirk, you should rethink your strategy."

Pike looked at them, "I get it. You two agreeing with each other is scary, by the way. Mister Sulu, you're with me. You too, Kirk." She nodded as Pike turned to Uhura, "Have Engineer Olson meet us in the shuttle bay. Chekov, you have the con."

The young Russian nodded, "Aye, Keptin." Jamie touched Bones hand on her way past him.

"Get back to medical," she whispered to her fiance.

He nodded, "Be careful, Jim." She gave him a sad smile and followed Pike into the turbolift.

* * *

"Without transporters, we can't beam off the ship. We can't assist Vulcan or the other crews. We can't do our jobs. Miss Kirk, Mister Sulu and Engineer Olson will space-jump from the shuttle. You'll land on that machine they've lowered into the atmosphere that's scrambling our gear, you'll get inside, you'll disable it and then you'll beam back to the ship. Mister Spock, I'm leaving you in command of the Enterprise. Once we have transport and comms back up, you'll contact Starfleet and report what the hell's going on out here. Kirk, I'm advancing you to first officer," Pike told them.

Jamie laughed, "You're kidding, right sir?"

He shook his head, "I'm not. No one on this ship has your experience, I'd leave you in charge if I could but the Admiralty would have a fit." Jamie decided that it wasn't worth arguing over but he knew what she was thinking.

She looked at him, "We take out that drill, what happens to you?"

He smirked, "You'll have to come and get me. Be careful with the ship, Spock, she's brand new." The doors to the lift closed and took the three command officers to the shuttle bay.

* * *

Jamie, Sulu and Olson were pulling on the environmental suits for their jump. Something was nagging Jamie, "Sir… Chris."

Pike looked at her, "Yea, kid." She hasn't called him Chris in almost ten years.

"I never thanked you for finding me… both times." Jamie remembered that night in the bar like it was yesterday. The thing about feeling worthless; was that most people didn't even bother trying. He was one of the few people who cared enough to say something.

" _That bullshit doesn't work on me, kid. I know better. Is this what your father died for or Hoshi. I mean, you walked away from that hell for what. So, you went to school like you promised, but what are you gonna do with it? Waste it fighting in bars? Enlist in Starfleet." Jamie laughed, "Why would I do that, I hate Starfleet." He shook his head, "Except you don't. You wouldn't talk to me if you did. You wouldn't work here at the yard if you did. It's what you want everybody to think." She glared at him, "They'll never see me. It will_ always _be about the_ great George Kirk _. I'm just good PR." Pike looked at her, "You want them to see, you have to_ make _them see. Show them the Jamie Kirk that I know, the brave, brilliant girl who would do anything to protect people. Make them remember_ _that you are_ more _than his name, because you are. You are too_ good _to waste your life this way. My shuttle leaves at oh-eight hundres from hanger four. Your father was the captain of a starship for twelve minutes. He saved eight hundred lives, including your mother's and yours. I dare you to do better, Jamie."_

Pike smiled at her, "Best thing I've ever managed to find, if I do say so myself." She was scared that he was gonna die and she told him as much. Pike touched her shoulder, "I'll do my best to stay alive, kid."

Jamie nodded as they loaded up on the shuttle. Jamie sat down and listened as Scotty's voice came over the comms, shuttle eighty-nine, you are clear…"

She looked at Olson, "You got the charges, right?"

He smiled, "Oh yea. I can't wait to kick some Romulan ass." Jamie nodded, at least he's enthusiastic.

Sulu nudged her, "You good, Jamie?"

"Crazy Romulan who killed my father is doing something to Vulcan and is about to do something to Pike. I'm just peachy," she said.

"It'll be okay, Pike's tougher than we are," Sulu said to her.

"Hiri, if this goes south…"

He cut her off, "Then we're going down together, sister." They bumped fists, and smiled. Pike called 'pre-jump.' The three officers secured their helmets and stood.

Jamie heard someone from the other ship over the comm, "Shuttle commander, you are clear from Enterprise..."

Pike spoke over it, "Alright, lady and gentlemen, we're approaching the drop zone. You have one shot to land on that platform. They may have defenses, so pull your chute as late as possible. Remember the Enterprise won't be able to beam you back until you've turned off that drill. Good luck." Pike released the hatch and launched them towards the planet. This was a wild ride and Jamie was keeping track of their descent.

"Olson, pull your chute," Sulu told him.

He was being an idiot, "No, not yet. Not yet." Damn.

"Olson, pull it," she called. He was too late and he got pulled under the drill, Jamie landed a second after that and she promptly found herself fighting a big, ugly Romulan. Don't fall off the drill, don't fall of the drill, don't fall of the drill. No matter how many times she said it, it didn't work. She took the guy over but she was left hanging on to the ledge.

"Gimme your hand," Sulu reached over and pulled her up. He looked at her, "Olsen had the charges."

Jamie nodded, "I know."

"So, what do we do?" Sulu asked her. Jamie ran the options through her head, she picked up a riffle and pointed it at the drill's components and started shooting.

"This." Sulu followed suit and eventually, they killed the drill. Jamie and Sulu took a second to breath before something came hurling past them, "Kirk to Enterprise. They just launched something at the planet through the hole they just drilled. Please tell me that you copy Enterprise?"

Uhura's voice was the best thing she's ever heard, "I hear you, Kirk." Jamie and Sulu smiled.

"Beam us out of here," she said knowing the comm attached to her suit picked it up.

Whoever was operating the transporter came over the comms, "Stand by, locking on your signal." Not fast enough because the drill started moving and Sulu got knocked off.

"Hiri!" Jamie did the only thing she could think of, she jumped for him. "Hold on," Jamie caught up to him and wrapped her arms around him. "I gotcha, pull my chute." Sulu hit the controls for her parachute to open but it wasn't built to hold this much weight and the whole thing snapped. Jamie could hear Chekov in her ear but she wasn't paying much attention to what he was saying, "We're falling without a chute, get us outta here."

* * *

"Gotcha!" was Chekov's voice as Jamie and Sulu hit the transporter pad.

"Oh, Pasha. _I love you_ ," she told the kid in his native language. The Russian smiled.

Sulu looked at her, "Thanks."

She chuckled, "Going down together, remember." He nodded and smiled.

"Clear the pad. I'm beaming to the surface," they both looked up to see Spock heading their way.

Jamie understood what he was doing, "You're going for the Elders?" He nodded. Jamie looked at him and whispered in Vulcan, " _Go with care, brother_." She could've argued or tried to talk him out of it but Spock is a very logical person and if he had reason to go down there she wasn't going to stand in his way. Jamie started to pull pieces of her suit off, and looked at the other officers in the transporter room, "Who has the con?" Chekov shook his head, he just handed it off, he wasn't sure who he gave it to. Jamie comm'ed the bridge, "Uhura, how are we doin' up there?"

The communications officer gave her a status report and Jamie told her to take the con. Vulcan only had minutes left, they had to do something. Jamie looked at the man sitting next to Chekov, "Kyle, I need you to start beaming people over from the other ships, the most critical to medical, everyone else to the transporter rooms. Can you do that?"

He nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

She looked at Sulu, "We need to get out of this gear, checked out by medical and then back to the bridge, go, I'll be right behind you." Jamie heard Spock over the comm ordering them to beam him and the High Command up from the surface.

Chekov got right to it, "Locking on, don't move." He had a lock on all but one, "I'm losing her! I'm losing her. I've lost her. Kirk, I lost her." Spock was still reaching for his mother when they materialized on the pad, she wasn't with them. Jamie looked at the assembled Vulcans and she could feel the heartbreak.

The command officer stepped closer to the group, " _I grieve with thee."_


	46. What Did You Do This Time?

"What did you do this time?" Bones asked when she walked into medical. Jamie didn't say anything, she just pulled him into the C.M.O.'s office. The second the door closed, she hugged him, whatever he was going to say died on his tongue. "Jim, what happened?" Bones wrapped his arms around her and she stood in his arms..

"Vulcan was destroyed. Spock's mother is dead. I don't even want to think about the other ships or the fact that we have no word from Pike. And I'm taking up your time. I should get to the bridge." He shook his head and made her sit down.

"You hurt your hand and did a number on your face. Since I'm your doctor, I'm gonna fix it while you fill me in." Jamie told him everything that happened up to that point. He thought about it, "What about Spock, should he still be in charge? Vulcans feel each other, part of their biology. They also have mental bonds with their family members which means…"

"That he felt his mother die. He's compromised. There's no way he'll admit it," Jamie finished for him. Spock usually thinks logically but Jamie knew that he loved his mother. "I don't want to take the chair; I'm not ready for it."

Bones smiled, "knowing that is half the battle, darlin'. I'm gonna go up there with you to see what's going on, since I'm the acting C.M.O." Jamie nodded as he finished wrapping her hand. Sickbay wasn't so crazy that he couldn't leave. Bones and Jamie get on the turbolift and went to the bridge.

The first thing Jamie heard was Spock asking a question, "Have you confirmed that Nero is heading for Earth?"

Uhura answered him, "Their trajectory suggests no other destination, Captain."

He nodded, "Thank you, Lieutenant." Jamie glanced around before she spoke.

"Earth may be his next stop, but we have to assume every Federation planet's a target," she told the others.

Chekov looked at them, "Vell, if the Federation is the target, vhy didn't zhey destroy us?"

Sulu shook his head, "Why would they? Why waste a weapon? We obviously weren't a threat."

Spock interjected, "That is not it. He said he wanted me to see something. The destruction of my home planet."

"How the hell did they do that, by the way? And where did the Romulans get that kind of weaponry?" Bones asked the group. Jamie will admit, it was a damn good question, Spock seemed to have an answer.

"The engineering comprehension necessary to artificially create a black hole may suggest an answer. Such technology could theoretically be manipulated to create a tunnel through space-time," the Vulcan told them. Jamie got it but Bones didn't.

"Damn it man, I am a doctor, not physicist. Are you actually suggesting they're from the future?" he asked.

"If you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable must be the truth," Spock told him.

Bones rolled his eyes, "How poetic."

Jamie shook her head, "It's Sherlock Holmes, Bones. _The Sign of the Four_ from 1890." Some of the crew looked at her like she was crazy but she shook her head and looked at Spock, "That also explains why they need Pike, he has details for Earth's defense grid. We need to catch up to that ship, disable it and get the captain back before they destroy that planet."

Spock looked at her, "We are technologically outmatched in every way. A rescue attempt would be illogical." No, it wouldn't, Jamie looked at Bones and Uhura, both seemed to be thinking the same thing.

"There has got to be something we can do," Jamie said. Sulu and Chekov nodded their agreement. Spock refused to see the logic in her statement.

"We must gather with the rest of Starfleet... to balance the terms of the next engagement," he told him.

She looked at him, "There won't _be_ a next engagement. By the time we've 'gathered,' it'll be too late! There are billions of people on that planet, we can't just abandon them and run in the opposite direction. I didn't want to say this but you aren't leaving me any options, Spock."

He looked at her, "In regards to what?"

Jamie took a breath, "I believe you're compromised. Per regulation six-one-nine, you aren't fit to command. Nothing you've suggested makes any sense. You can't stand here and say you feel nothing, I have too good a read on you and I'm not the only one who can see it." Ambassador Sarek stepped onto the bridge behind Spock.

The young Vulcan looked at her, "This is an attempt take control of the ship. You can be court marshaled."

Uhura shook her head, "Listen to yourself, Spock. She's only trying to do what's best for the ship, running in the opposite direction isn't it. You may not be able to admit it but your emotions are not in check. Don't accuse Kirk of mutiny because she brought it up." Jamie looked at her friend, Ny was a good person, even if it meant disagreeing with her boyfriend. Jamie stepped closer to him.

"I get it. My dad has been gone my whole life, nobody ever lets me forget it. I never got the chance to mourn or forget because everything about my life has been about his death for so long, I just accepted that it was a part of who I am. What you're feeling right now is something I've had to live with for twenty-five years. It hurts, God does it hurt but I know how to work around my feelings, which is something you never had to do." Jamie was getting through to him. His father stepped forward.

"Listen to your friend, Spock. She speaks with logic," Sarek told his son. Jamie was begging him to see logic, she didn't want to hurt him. Spock looked at his father, then Uhura and finally at Bones.

"Doctor, I am no longer fit for duty. I hereby relinquish my command on the grounds that I have been emotionally compromised. Please note the time and date in the ship's log," Spock informed the doctor. Jamie watched as Spock left the bridge with his father.

"This sucks," she whispered.

Bones touched her shoulder, "Better now than later. If you would've waited, we'd be too late. We still might be." Jamie sat in the command chair, it was nothing like she thought it'd be. There wasn't anything exciting or cool, it was just a weight, one that she couldn't drop. She opened a comm link to the ship.

"Attention, crew of the Enterprise, this is Jamie Kirk. Mister Spock has resigned commission and advanced me to acting Captain. I know you are all expecting to regroup with the fleet, but I'm ordering a pursuit course of the enemy ship to Earth. I want status reports from all department heads in ten minutes. Kirk out." She looked around the bridge, "Sulu and Chekov, set a course forEarth and get us there as fast as the ship will take us. We also need to come up with a plan. Uhura, I need a roster of who is on the ship. One for the fleet and one for the Vulcan embassy. Bones, I need a casualty list. Deaths and major injuries are the priority. You two can work together." They all nodded and moved to follow her orders. Jamie comm'ed engineering and asked for Scotty to come up when he got the chance. Jamie looked around the bridge and thought to herself, 'Help me out here, dad.'


	47. Can't Just Go In There Guns Blazing, Jim

"Can't just go in there guns blazing, Jim." Jamie looked at him and rolled her eyes. He's lucky she knows he trusts her, otherwise, she'd be a little pissed off.

"I know that, I'm telling you to..." Jamie started but Chekov cut her off.

"Keptin Kirk. Kepin Kirk," the kid called.

She turned to face him, "Yes, Chekov. What is it?"

He looked at them, "Based on the Narada's course from Wulcan, I have projected that Nero vill travel pass Saturn. Like you said we need to stay inwisible to Nero or he'll destroy us. If Mister Scott can get us to varp factor four and if we drop out of varp behind one of Saturn's moons, say Titan, zhe magnetic distortion from zhe planet's rings vill make us inwisible to Nero's sensors. From there, as long as the drill is not actiwated we can beam aboard zhe enemy ship." Jamie ran the math though her head as Scotty moved to stand next to her.

"Aye, that might work, laddie," the engineer said.

Bones looked at Chekov, then at her, "Wait a minute, Jim. He's seventeen years old."

Jamie nodded, "I know how old he is, doesn't mean he's not a genius."

"Doctor, Mister Chekov is correct. I can confirm his telemetry. If Mister Sulu is able to maneuver us into position, I can beam aboard Nero's ship, steal back the black hole device and, if possible, bring back Captain Pike," Spock spoke from behind her. Jamie smiled and looked at him.

"You know I can't let you do that," she told the tall officer.

Spock looked at her, "Romulans and Vulcans share a common ancestry. Our cultural similarities will make it easier for me to access the ship's computer to locate the device. Also my mother was human, which makes Earth the only home I have left."

"I'm coming with you." Jamie was always planning on going, there was no way that she'd let him go alone.

Bones rolled his eyes, "Of course you will."

"I would cite regulation, but I know you will simply ignore it," Spock told her.

Jamie chuckled, "Well, this _is_ me we're talking about and Pike would come for me. He already has." Jamie sat with Spock, Scotty, Chekov and Sulu going over the plan, they didn't want to leave anything to chance if they could help it.

Sulu looked at his console, "We're five minutes out, Captain."

"Alright people, it's go time," she told the officers on the bridge. Jamie opened the comm link to the whole ship, "All hands this is Acting Captain Kirk. I… I was gonna come up with some clever speech but that's more Pike's thing than mine. The truth is, I'm scared. I image that I'm not the only one. When we all signed up to see the universe, something like this happening wasn't even an idea and now it's a reality. I don't know what the next few hours will bring us, what I do know is that there isn't a crew in the Federation better than this one. We have one shot, for Starfleet, for our captain, for the thousands of friends and colleagues on the other ships, for Earth and for the people of Vulcan, let's make that one shot count. Kirk out." Jamie stood and looked around the bridge, "Mister Sulu, you have the con. Whatever happens, if you think you have the tactical advantage fire on that ship even if we're still on board. That's an order. Otherwise we'll contact the Enterprise when we're ready to be beamed back."

Her friend nodded, "Yes, ma'am. And for the record, that was a good speech." Jamie smiled at the helmsman and left the bridge with Spock, Scotty, Bones and Uhura. They made their way through the ship and to the transporter room where Scotty took a seat. Sulu comm'ed from the bridge to let them know they were in position above Titan. Jamie looked at her fiancé but before she could say anything, he kissed her.

"Come back to me, darlin'."

"I'll do my damnedest. I love you, Leonard Horatio McCoy," she whispered against his lips.

"I love you too Jamie Teresa Kirk. Go get 'em." He gave her one of those smiles she loves so damn much before he kissed her again and let her go. Jamie stepped up on the transporter pad next to Spock and Uhura, they're so cute. Jamie didn't intend to listen but it couldn't be avoided.

Spock whispered, "I will be back."

Uhura kissed him, "You better be. I'll be monitoring your frequency."

Spock looked at her, "Thank you, Nyota." The linguist stepped away from him and hugged Jamie.

"You listen and you listen good, Kirk. Don't you die on us," Uhura told her.

Jamie smiled and nodded, "Wouldn't dare."

Scotty got their attention, "Okay then. If there's any common sense in the design of the enemy's ship I should be putting ye somewhere in the cargo bay, shouldn't be a soul in sight." Jamie looked over at Bones and Uhura, then she glanced at Spock who gave her a sharp nod.

She looked at Scotty, "Energize."

* * *

Jamie looked around, this was not the empty cargo bay that her friend promised. They had to shot their way around the Romulans in the large room. Jamie looked at Spock, "I got you covered, go."

He looked at her then the Romulan on the deck, "Are you certain?"

"Yea, I gotcha," she said with a nod. Jamie kept a lookout while Spock did a surface mind meld with the guy on the ground in front of him. Jamie looked over as he pulled his hand away, "Do you know where it is? The black hole device?"

He nodded, "And Captain Pike." They made their through the ship, Spock relayed the information he gathered. They found the ship carrying the black hole device. "I foresee a complication. The design of this ship is far more advanced than I have anticipated."

The ship's computer came alive, "Voice print and face recognition analysis enabled. Welcome back, Ambassador Spock." What the hell? Jamie looked at Spock, he didn't show it but she knew he was wondering what was up.

"That's weird. Well, good luck."

Spock made his way to the cockpit, "Jamie, the statistical likelihood that our plan will succeed is less than four-point-three percent."

Jamie chuckled, "I know, but it'll work."

"In the event that I do not return please tell Lieutenant Uhura…"

She cut him off, "Spock, it'll work." Jamie made her way off the ship in search of Pike, she found Nero instead. "Nero, order your men to disable the drill or I will..."

He grabbed her, "I know your face from Earth's history. James T. Kirk was considered to be a great man. He went on to captain the USS Enterprise, but that was another life. A life I will deprive you of just like I did your father." Kirk, a guy. Jamie thought about it for a second, alternate reality, alternate Jim.

"I am _not_ my father," she said as she pushed herself to her feet.

One of Nero's crew showed up, "Captain Nero. The Vulcan ship has been taken. The drill has been destroyed."

The Romulan captain flipped, "Spock! Spock!" He ran off an left her with the other officer. Jamie did her best to fight him but he was naturally stronger than her. He had her by the throat.

"Your species is even weaker than I expected. You can't even speak. What?" She smirked, he wasn't paying attention.

"I got your gun." Jamie shot him and pulled herself onto the ledge he almost dropped her from. Pike, gotta get Pike. She picked up the weapon she grabbed and made her way to where Spock told her the Romulans were holding her mentor hostage. She found him strapped to a flat medal table thing.

"What are you doing here?" Pike asked after she shot a couple guys and got to him.

"I'm following orders, for a change," she told him. He laughed, then pulled the weapon from her belt and shot over her shoulder, "Thanks." Jamie opened her communicator, "Enterprise, now." One second, Jamie and Pike are on the enemy ship and the next, they're standing with Spock on the Enterprise. "Nice timing, Monty."

The engineer smiled, "I've never beamed three people from two targets onto one pad before."


	48. Jim, I Got Him

"Jim, I got him," Bones told her. Jamie smiled when he ran the transporter room with some of his staff. The doctor ran straight to her and Pike and took the older officer's weight from her. Jamie didn't have the words for how she felt so she touched his arm. It only lasted for a second and wouldn't mean much to most people, but his eyes locked with hers just long enough for him to acknowledge that she was okay. Jamie and Spock stepped of the pad, Scotty was still marveling in his awesomeness –he was pretty awesome- when Jamie looked at him.

"Good job, get back to engineering," she ordered her friend before she, Spock and Uhura sprinted to bridge. As soon as they walked in, Chekov looked at her.

"Keptin, zhe enemy ship is losing power. Zhey're shields are down," the navigator told her as he looked over the tactical information. Jamie didn't look at communications.

"Hail them, now." She knew Uhura was on it.

"Aye, Captain," was the communication officer's reply. Jamie ran everything through her head and looked at Spock before turning her attention to Nero.

"This is Captain Jamie T. Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise. Your ship is compromised. You're too close to the singularity to survive without assistance which we are willing to provide."

Spock looked at her and whispered, "Captain, what are you doing?" Jamie was trying to avoid a full-scale war.

"Showing them compassion may be the only way to make peace with Romulus, Spock. It's logical, thought you'd like that," she told him.

Of course, he surprised her when he replied, "No, not really. Not this time."

Nero decided to weigh in on her offer, "I would rather suffer the end of Romulus a thousand times, I would rather die in agony than accept assistance from you."

"I got one question, Nero. Where's the other Vulcan?" Spock and members of the crew looked at her; Spock was the only one who understood what she was asking. "You wanted him to see, so did he?"

Nero sneered, "I won't tell you. You might as well kill me." Jamie smirked; he answered her even if he didn't think so.

"As you wish. Sulu arm phasers. Fire everything we've got," she ordered.

Sulu nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

Jamie isn't as destructive as people might assume, but there was beauty in watching the Narada collapse in on itself. Her favorite helmsman destroyed the ship with extreme prejudice; Nero won't be popping up anywhere else. "Sulu, let's go home."

"Aye, Captain." Sulu punched in the commands but they weren't moving.

"Why aren't we at warp?" she asked him.

"We are, ma'am," was his reply. Jamie hit the comm link on the chair.

"Kirk to engineering. Get us outta here, Scotty." She could hear her friend running around.

"You bet your ass, Captain." He paused, "Captain, we're caught in the gravity well. It's got us."

Jamie looked at Sulu, "Go to maximum warp. Push it!"

Scotty was still on the comm, "I'm giving it all she's got, Captain."

Jamie recalled all the physics she had ever learned, there has to be something. "Scotty, dump the core and detonate. The blast..." Scotty picked up her train of thought.

"...could be enough to push us away. You sure about this, lass?" the engineer asked. Was she sure? Yes.

"We built this ship, Scotty. We know she can do it." That seemed to be enough for him because a few seconds later, they were pushed away from the singularity. Jamie sat back in the chair and took a breath. She looked over at Spock, who nodded. They did it; they saved Earth.

Jamie let everybody have a few minutes to let the reality sink in before she got the work, "Sulu and Chekov…"

Sulu cut her off, "Find out where we are and the best way to get us home. Aye, Captain." She looked at Uhura but didn't get a chance to say anything before her friend did.

"Reestablish communications with Starfleet, get a status update from all section heads and come up with a shift rotation so we can all rest. On it, Captain," the linguist told her.

Jamie looked at Spock, "I will began assisting in determining our location… after I check on the refugees, Captain."

Jamie smiled and nodded, "Hey, Spock. How many planets or planetoids are close enough to see Vulcan? Were close enough?" Jamie knew that there were seven other planets in that system but they weren't all close to each other. Spock told her that only one planet fit her parameters: Delta Vega. "Bet that's where they left the other 'you'. Nero wanted to make you see. We might have to look into that." Spock nodded before heading to do his tasks. Jamie needed a trip to sickbay and a report from Scott so that she could help fix their ship. She left Sulu with the con and went to see how bad Bones' corner of the ship was. Jamie got pats on the shoulder and 'good job, Captain' from almost everyone she passed.

It was pure chaos in medical, not that she expected anything different. Jamie looked around for any familiar faces and spotted an Orion in blue on one of the bio-beds. Jamie's heart practically jumped out of her chest when she got close enough and realized that it was Gaila. The officer next to her friend looked at Jamie.

"She saved our asses, ma'am." Jamie nodded; that sounded like Gaila. She sent a quick message to let Uhura know. Jamie spotted a few of her classmates but nobody she knew well; that was either very good, or very bad. The young Acting Captain tracked down a nurse to tape up her ribs and re-wrap her wrist. She even managed to get an update on Pike's surgery and talked to some of the injured crew members before heading off to engineering.

"Need another set of hands, Scotty?" He nodded while some of the officers looked at her with awe. Scotty rattled off a million and three things that needed to be fixed. Jamie opted to help fix the power problem and got right to work. She heard some of them whisper and one even asked Scotty if she knew what she was doing. Her friend laughed.

"She was on the engineering team that built this ship, laddie. She's the only person who knows the Enterprise as well as I do," he told the young engineer. She'd been working under a panel for a few hours and was just finishing up when Uhura comm'ed for her to get back to the bridge, Scotty went with her.

"Keptin on zhe bridge." Jamie glanced at her young friend.

"You guys got something?"

Chekov nodded, "Da, Keptin. Ve know vhere ve are." Jamie smiled as Sulu picked up where Chekov let off.

"We're near Andor. We can be there in 16 hours at half impulse, or seven hours at full impulse power." A founding planet of the Federation, Jamie breathed a sigh of relief.

"We're already heading that way, aren't we?"

Sulu nodded, "Yes, ma'am, we are."

Jamie looked at Scotty, "How much juice we got?"

He did some math in his head, "I can give ya three-quarters impulse power. Puts us at Andor in eleven and a half hours." Jamie nodded and looked at Sulu, who upped their speed.

"I bet none of you idiots have rested or eaten since this whole thing started," Bones stepped onto the bridge. He looked tired but other than that, he looked okay. Before Jamie could say anything, Bones glared at her, "Pike is fine, before you ask. They forced some kind of slug down his throat but I got it out without doing more damage. He's asleep, we'll be alerted when he wakes up. Here's what gonna happen; Kirk and Spock, you two are getting checked over at medical. Then, the both of you and Scotty will get six hours of sleep. When you get back on duty, Sulu, Chekov and Uhura will get some rest. It's not up for argument or discussion, don't make me pull a medical override on you." Jamie, Sulu, Scotty and Chekov all laughed and looked at Uhura, who handed Bones a PADD.

"We beat you to it, doc," Uhura told him. The rotation Uhura set up had Jamie, Bones, Sulu and Chekov resting first and Uhura, Scotty and Spock resting second.

He looked at Jamie, she shrugged, "One of your nurses already patched me up and we were about to split to get some rest, we just needed to know where we were, first. Half a day to Andor, in case you were wondering." Jamie left Spock with the con as she, Bones, Sulu and Chekov left the bridge.


	49. Let Me See

"Let me see," he whispered. Jamie looked at him and tried to hide the wince when she turned. Bones saved her from lying, "You're favoring your right side, darlin' and I can see the bruise on your neck forming. So, let me see." Jamie took a breath, changing into the guy's uniform was a good idea when she was in EVA gear and jumped on Vulcan but now the idea of taking it off seemed like an impossible task, it was harder to than the dress. Bones must've been reading her mind because he closed the short distance to her and gently pulled the black shirt over her head. Then he unwrapped her ribs. Jamie was black and blue and purple.

"What the hell…?"

She looked at him, "Fighting with Romulans in hand-to-hand combat is not recommended. It's not as bad as it looks but I always say that, so I doubt you'll listen." Bones checked her neck than her ribs.

"Who tried to choke you?" he asked.

Jamie took a breath, "Nero. He wanted to deprive me of my life… like he did my father. That's what he said, anyway." There were a ton of things still on the tip of her tongue but she couldn't get them out.

"Are you okay? I know we didn't get much chance to dwell on it but he is the man who killed your father," Bones said.

She nodded, "I'm guess. I mean, I'll cry about it later… maybe after I talk to Sam. George was more his father than mine." Even as she said it, she realized that it wasn't remotely true. George gave her a gift; he was a man looking at the universe through his last moments and gave his baby daughter the only thing he had in his power to give: a chance at life. Jamie was sure that there was a higher power looking over them because there was no way they should've survived. Bones looked at her as she grabbed the hand that was touching her side, "That tickles, Bones." 

He smiled and pulled her against his chest, "That was close, darlin'." It really was. If they had been a few minutes later, they'd be mourning for Earth too. The doctor decided that they both had to get some sleep, Jamie opted for a sonic shower and pulled on one of Bones' uniform undershirts after he re-wrapped her ribs. "What I tell you about my clothes?"

She stuck out her tongue, "Which is why you got an extra from the quartermaster, I'm on to you, sweetheart." He chuckled as Jamie climbed into the too small bed with him and found herself more on Bones than on the bed. They were both too tired and too relieved to care. Jamie was asleep the second her head hit his shoulder.

* * *

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. "Okay, computer, turn it off." The beeping stopped and the computer rattled off information like time and temperature. Jamie looked around the room and found herself alone. There was a PADD sitting on the stand next to Bones' bed. She picked it up:

 _Jim,_  
Pike woke up and I decided to let you sleep. Head on over when you get up, he's asking for you and I want to take another look at your ribs. Nyota dropped off a uniform from the quartermaster.   
Your Bones.

Jamie smiled as she hopped up and pulled on the clean uniform that was sitting under the PADD. Funny how being clean and getting some sleep made her feel a hundred times better. Medical wasn't as bad as the last time she was there. Jamie looked around and saw Gaila talking to Uhura but she was diverted to Captain Pike's room before she could stop by.

"Reporting as ordered, sir." Bones looked over at her but didn't say anything. With Pike on the ship, technically, she wasn't the captain anymore, just the first officer.

"Report, Miss Kirk," the older officer said from his spot in the bed. Jamie gave him a rundown of what happened and then the condition of the ship.

"Where are we?" Pike asked.

"Five hours away from Andor. We're hoping to have comms up to alert Starbase Seven that we're incoming but I won't hold my breath. Duct tape and bubblegum, sir."

Pike laughed, "At least we're in one piece. Ouch, that hurts."

Bones looked at him, "Can't help that, sir. Your system is too compromised to give you anything stronger." Jamie had already been given the update on Pike and she was worried, there was a chance that he wouldn't have full use of his legs again.

Pike looked her over for a second, "I had no intention on you becoming the CO of my ship. That said, you did what you had to do and you saved a lot of lives. As you can see, I'm in no condition to lead this crew… and even if I wanted to, they aren't mine, they're yours. When we get to Starbase Seven, you'll have your hands full but you know that. I am very proud of you, Jamie. Now, get back to work, Captain."

She nodded, "Yes, sir." Bones was trying to do something and Pike was arguing with him. Jamie didn't move and chuckled, they both looked at her. "I guess everybody was right. I do take after my dad," she said before stepping out of the room and leaning against the wall.

_"Why do you care? So, you wrote some paper on my father, congratulations, you know more about him than I do. Go away. I almost died, the only people who ever loved me are dead… just leave me alone. Leave me alone. Everybody always leaves me… you'll be here today and be gone tomorrow just like everyone else. Save me the effort of caring about someone for them to disappear on me. Hell, save yourself the trouble, Commander. I'm not worth it. I was never worth it." He sat down next to her on the floor, "I happen to think you're worth it. And if you're gonna yell at me, at least call me Chris." He put his arm around her shoulders, "I'm not going anywhere, kid. Not if I can help it."_

"Lost in thought, Captain?" Jamie looked up to the nurse that patched her up standing in front of her.

She smiled, "More like caught in a memory. Nurse Chapel, right?" The woman nodded at her, "Was it anything good?"

Jamie smiled, "yea, it was good." There had been people who wondered just what Pike's relationship with her was. It was very clear that while it wasn't romantic, it was close. She knew that the vultures would descend when it came out that she was in charge of the ship. She looked over the were her friends were when she came in but they weren't there. "Chapel, do you know where Lieutenants Mitchell and Uhura went?"

The nurse nodded, "They said something about the communications system. Doctor McCoy signed off on Mitchell's release earlier." Jamie nodded and headed to the bridge just in time to be of use.

* * *

Uhura, Spock and Scotty headed to bed so Jamie, Chekov and Gaila got to work finishing up Uhura's project. Jamie was grateful when she learned that Ambassador Sarek and some of the Vulcans were helping out.

"Co… in…. terprise. USS Enterprise, do you copy?" came a voice from the comm system.

Chekov jumped up and hugged her, "Ve did it!" Jamie touched Gaila's shoulder and smiled. She looked at the guy Uhura replaced when this whole thing started.

"Hawkins, answer them." The communications officer responded to the hail and even managed to get the comm from HQ on the screen.

"Admiral Archer, Admiral Barnett, it is good to see you, sirs," she didn't even hide the big ass smile on her face. They both noticed that Jamie was sitting in the command chair.

"Kirk, where's Pike?" Barnett asked. Jamie gave them a full report and relayed the current command positions on the ship.

"We'll be arriving at Starbase Seven soon, sirs. We're short on options." Jamie knew that they would only be there long enough to replace the parts of the core that the ejected, warping back to Sol would only take an hour from the Andor system. The admirals made sure that the crew was as well as they could be and even talked to Sarek before they signed off.

"Comm us when you get to the Starbase. We'll let them know that you're incoming. Good work, Acting Captain Kirk," Archer told her. Jamie smiled as the transmission cut. That was the good part about getting the comms back, the bad part was that their casualty list was updated to the one on Starfleet's server. Jamie almost burst into tears on the bridge, Sulu looked at her, "You okay?"

Jamie shook her head, "I gotta talk to Bones, Sulu take the con."


	50. You Have to Tell Them

"You have to tell them." Jamie looked at him, she had a sarcastic reply rolling around her head but she didn't say anything, she just looked at the PADD in her lap. The Enterprise left earth as one of a group of ships to help Vulcan; there was the USS Antares, the USS Armstrong, the USS Farragut, the USS Hood, the USS Newton, the USS Odyssey, the USS Truman, and the USS Wolcott. The USS Mayflower was already near Vulcan when the call came for assistance and was in pieces when they got there. Aside from the groups of people they managed to beam over from various ships, there was a long list of casualties. Jamie didn't want to know but she had to look at it and now she was wishing that she hadn't. There were people on the list that she knew; people she served with or went to class with. Some she liked, others that she didn't but the ones that bothered her most were the names of her family members. She handed the PADD to her fiancé and watched the life drain from his face. Yeah, that's the look she was expecting.

_NT289-0927NYK CAPTAIN Andrade-Moore, Sam.  
Commanding Officer, USS Wolcott- KIA_

**_TK837-9245NHV LIEUTENANT Braxim.  
Tactical, USS Farragut- KIA_ **

_NE826-8265AKH LIEUTENANT (JG) Carney, Aaron Daniel.  
Astrophysics, USS Odyssey- MISSING, presumed KIA_

_IR725-9475NEG ENSIGN Jackson, Arthur.  
Engineering, USS Hood- KIA_

**_NS236-7357HGS LIEUTENANT Kelso, Lee.  
Navigation, USS Farragut- KIA_ **

_KH726-6529KHB ENSIGN Luther, Nadja.  
Navigation, USS Wolcott- KIA_

**_PW334-7444TVB LIEUTENANT COMMANDER Mitchell, Gary.  
Helm, USS Farragut- KIA_ **

_VU783-2971VTY CHIEF PETTY OFFICER Olson, Allan James.  
Engineering, USS Enterprise- KIA_

_BI976-1863HBV LIEUTENANT D'Sab S'Pisj Panak.  
Biology, USS Truman- _ _MISSING, presumed KIA_

_TC237-1139BUA COMMANDER Pell, Taylor.  
Executive Officer and Tactical Officer, USS Armstrong- KIA_

_MP843-5937HUT COMMANDER Puri, Vala. M.D., PhD.  
Chief Medical Officer, USS Enterprise- KIA_

_OB729-2869BTD LIEUTENANT Raynor, James Andrew.  
Engineering, USS Armstrong- _ _MISSING, presumed KIA_

**_OC286-8865NTT ENSIGN Riley, Kevin Thomas.  
Navigation, USS Hood- KIA_ **

_BU732-1970BVF LIEUTENANT Simmons, Samuel Edward.  
Medical (Medic), USS Newton- KIA_

_BF837-2689NBE LIEUTENANT (JG) Thanas, Val'as.  
Engineering, USS Hood- _ _MISSING, presumed KIA_

_LN379-1001NYU COMMANDER Tomlin, Trevor.  
Executive Officer, USS Odyssey- KIA_

_JE976-8019ABY COMMANDER Yin, Li.  
Chief Science Officer, USS Newton- KIA_

"What am I gonna say? What could I possibly say to make this better? And it's not just Gaila it's all of them. It's..." Bones walked around the desk in 'his' office and pulled her into his arms as the tears started to fall.

"It's that they're family and you don't know how to tell the others that part of our family is gone," he whispered. She nodded into his chest. Damn, Nero. If she could kill that crazy Romulan again, she would. "It's not your fault, Jim. Nero's just lucky you already killed him."

Jamie laughed, "I was thinking that." She looked up at him, Bones wiped the tears from her face.

"You know, Kev would tell you to stuck it up. I bet you taught him that," he said. Jamie nodded, she did.

_"Don't cry, let me see, sweetie." The little boy held up his arm, it was broken. It wasn't a bad break, well, it wouldn't have been if they were in a normal medical situation. "Look at me, Kev. This hurts, I know it does but right now I need you to be strong. Can I see your muscles." The boy held up his good arm, "Look at that, I think you're stronger than me. I'm going to wrap this up really good. Now, I know it hurts but you can't cry about it all day, you don't have enough energy. You gotta show the other kids that you can be just as tough as they are. Can you do that?" He nodded as Jamie wrapped his arm. "I promise that I won't let him get away with this, Kevin. Even if it's the last thing I do."_

Jamie was still in Bones' arms as he comm'ed Uhura and told her to grab the senior staff and Gaila. He sighed, "Come on. We need to do this before someone else tells them." Jamie nodded.

* * *

"Sit down, guys," she told everybody after the were all in the captain's ready room. Jamie didn't say anything for a moment

"Who?" Uhura asked. The group looked at her.

"The list is really long," Jamie whispered. They all nodded and Sulu spoke.

"Give us the short version," the helmsman said.

"First things first, Hikaru, your sister Yuki is okay. She's on a Vulcan ship. Same goes Sybok." Spock's brother. She looked at the half Vulcan who nodded his relief. She took a breath, "We lost Brax, Lee, Kev and… Gary." Jamie looked at her green friend, she didn't know what to do, she didn't even realize that she was crying until Uhura reached over from her spot between the Orion and the Acting Captain and took Jamie's hand. Jamie didn't know what to do, "Gaila… I'm so…"

"Don't, don't… this wasn't your fault. You saved his family and everyone else on earth; we both know that he'd be okay with that. It sucks and it hurts but Gary would kick both our asses if we started blaming ourselves." Jamie laughed, that sounded like her friend.

"True," she whispered.

" _Is it true what they say about you?" a voice asked from behind her. She rolled her eyes, "Don't know, what_ do they _say?" Jamie looked at the handsome cadet. He smiled at her, "That you're only here because of your father." She shrugged, "I had a father? Huh? I never met the man." He laughed, "I guess you're sick of that. I'm sorry, I couldn't resist, I promise to never bring it up again. Gary Mitchell." He held out his hand, "Jamie Kirk, but you knew that." Jamie reached over and shook his hand, he held onto it for a second. "How about you let me make it up to you?" he offered. She smirked, "Whatcha have in mind?" He shrugged, "Well, I was thinking…" Jamie laughed, "You were thinking, wow, that must've hurt your brain." Gary looked at her with mock hurt on his face, "Ouch. I think I might like you, Kirk." Jamie looked at him and responded with sarcasm, "Finally, my life is complete."_

Jamie tried to shake the memory from her brain but it didn't work, it seemed to be her penance for surviving something else that she shouldn't have. Her friends must have been reading her face because they spoke up. "Don't do that to yourself, Jamie," Sulu said as he stood next to her.

Scotty nodded, "The memories aren't punishment, lass." She nodded at him as Hawkins called them from the bridge, they were nearing Starbase Seven.

* * *

When they docked, Jamie learned that nobody planned to stay on the Starbase. To Jamie's utter amazement, everyone on the Enterprise decided to stay with the ship until they got back to earth, even all the Vulcans. They were still cramped for space but none of them seemed to mind. The ship's warp core was given a quick fix and prepped to head home.

Warping back to Sol brought relief like none other. Everyone on the bridge -including Bones and Scotty- watched as earth filled the viewscreen and listened as communications from Starbase One filled the speakers.

"You got us home, darlin'," Bones whispered from next to her. She looked at their world... their home and smiled, she never thought she'd miss Earth that much. Jamie looked around the room as they pulled in to the dock.

"Well, I guess this is it. I just want to say that despite everything that happened in the last thirty-six hours, it has been an honor to serve with each of you."

One of the officers behind her stepped forward, "Captain Kirk, I speak for everyone on this ship when I say that the honor is ours, ma'am."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone on the list is in the story somewhere. That isn't the whole thing, just Jamie and co. pulling familiar names out. If I tried to make the whole list, I'd be here for a very long time.


	51. Bullshit

"Bullshit," Bones muttered. Jamie thought the same thing for half a second but everything about this man told her that he was Spock. Older, wiser and even a bit more human than the one she's known for the last few years. The old Vulcan smiled –actually smiled- at them.

"It is agreeable to see you as well my old friend." The look on Bones' face was priceless. Jamie and Spock had been right to tell Starfleet to check Delta Vega for an older Vulcan, they found the old man near the Hunter Outpost. A week after they returned, the Enterprise's acting senior staff was called into Admiral Archer's office and introduced to the Spock from Nero's reality. They talked with him but there came a point when he looked at Jamie and offered to show her what he meant.

"It will be easier, Jim." Nobody but Bones, Sam and Pike ever called her that, for some reason, it felt right. She nodded her consent, despite Bones' argument. "I would not harm her, Leonard. Of that, you can always be sure." The grumpy doctor nodded.

"Our minds, one and together." He touched his hand to her face and Jamie found herself looking through his mind. _"One hundred twenty-nine years from now, a star will explode and threaten to destroy the galaxy,"_ Spock's voice echoed through her. _"That is where I'm from Jim... The future._ _A star went supernova._ _Consuming everything in its path._ _I promised the Romulans that I will save their planet."_ Jamie watched as a star destroyed everything around it and got closer to a large planet, Romulus. She watched as Spock and a group made up of Vulcans and Romulans worked together on the Jellyfish ship. " _We outfitted our fastest ship. Using red matter I would create a black hole_ _which would absorb the exploding star._ _I was on route when the unthinkable happened._ _The supernova destroyed Romulus._ _I had little time._ _I had to extract the red matter and shoot it into the supernova._ _As I began my return trip I was intercepted."_ Jamie saw the Narada and members of the crew. The one that stuck out was their leader. " _He called himself Nero. In my attempt to escape, both of us were pulled into the black hole._ _Nero went through first... He was the first to arrive._ _Nero spent the next twenty-five years awaiting my arrival._ _But what was years for Nero_ _was only seconds for me._ _I went through the black hole._ _Nero was waiting for me._ _He held me responsible for the loss of his world._ _He captured my vessel and spared my life... for one reason... so that I would know his pain._ _He beamed me to Delta Vega so that I can observe his vengeance._ _As he was helpless to save his planet_ , _I would be helpless to save mine."_ She watched the destruction of Vulcan through his eyes and felt the heartbreak rip though her. " _Billions of lives lost because of me, Jim._ _Because I failed."_

Spock pulled away from her but she caught a glimpse of his life and she saw a man; he was like her but different. She saw Bones, Ny, Pasha, Monty and Hiri. She even saw Gary and Lee through his eyes. "Forgive me. Emotional transference is an effect of the mind meld." Jamie nodded as the tears fell, she reached over and touched the older Spock's arm.

"Going back in time you changed all our lives. As much as it's all different, it was all the same. We're all there." The others looked at her.

Old Spock explained, "You had a way of pulling people in. They were always intelligent and in the end, fiercely loyal. In my reality, Leonard and I were often found on your flank. I was the logic, you were the intuition and Leonard was the morality. Much like the three of you interact now. People often considered us three parts of a whole. Montgomery could fix nearly anything. Nyota was compassion and heart that held us all together. Hikaru and Pavel were loyal to you even after they each became captains. In one particular insistence, Hikaru almost lost command of his ship after he violated orders from Command to assist you." Jamie could see it, she did see it.

"Where you came from did… did I know my father?" she asked.

He nodded, "You often spoke of him as being your inspiration for joining Starfleet. He proudly lived to see you become captain of the Enterprise." She was captain in the other reality.

"You know, coming back in time, changing history, that's cheating," she whispered.

The Vulcan smiled, "A trick I learned from my best friend."

Young Spock looked at them, "You are implying that Kirk and I are closer in your reality."

The older Spock looked at him, "You need each other. Do not deprive yourself of all that you can accomplish together. Of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize." Jamie looked at her friend. They all knew that he was considering leaving Starfleet.

"In the face of extinction it is only logical I resign my Starfleet commission and help rebuild our race," he told his older self.

Older Spock looked at him, "And yet you can be in two places at once. I urge you to remain in Starfleet. I've already located a suitable planet on which to establish a Vulcan colony. Spock, in this case do yourself a favor, put aside logic and do what feels right." That's what she said, not as eloquently but still.

They talked to him a little while longer but they had duties to see to and they couldn't occupy Archer's office all day. As they went to leave the older Spock, who they would publicly refer to as Ambassador Selak, looked at the group and offered the Vulcan salute, "Since my customary farewell would appear awfully self serving, I shall simply say good luck, my friends."

Jamie smiled and returned the gesture, "Peace and long life, Spock."

They left Archer's office and went their separate ways. Jamie had yet another debriefing session with the board and Bones decided to walk over with her."They keep asking the same questions, every day since we got back. It's exhausting. And walking around this place is damned depressing."

Bones nodded his agreement and took her hand, "Well at least we'll get to see our families tomorrow." There was a light at the tunnel.

The academy felt like it was empty. The cadets on the Enterprise and the few dozen that were rescued from the other ships were ordered to wear their rank shoulder-boards since their commissioning was valid. The first and second year cadet's gave the new officers a wide berth so it was almost like nobody was there. The brass called off their classes for the time being. Anyone who could test out of stuff, did. Jamie was so glad she was officially done already. In the coming days, the personal belongings of everyone they lost would need to be packed up and shipped to their families. Jamie and company were going to pack up Kevin, Braxim, and Kelso's rooms. They also offered to pack up their roommate's belonging and the rooms of a few other classmates that they all knew well enough like Raynor, Luther, Thanas, Simmons, Carney and Jackson. Barnett was thankful that they agreed to help, he was having a difficult time assigning the task and short on people to actually do half of the stuff he needed done since they lost a good chunk of the staff too. Gaila was already on leave, none of them have seen her in days but Dana Mitchell, Gary's mom, comm'ed to let them know that she was at the apartment and that Gaila was ok. Jamie planned to stop by after she saw the admirals.

"Can I ask you somethin', darlin'?" Jamie looked at him and nodded. He took a breath, "Will you marry me?"

Jamie raised an eyebrow, "I said yes the last time you asked. We're already engaged, Bones."

He nodded, "I am well aware of that, Jim. I guess I'm asking if you'll marry me sooner rather than later."

Jamie thought about it and smiled, "Anytime you want… after Pike gets outta the hospital... and not here, in Georgia."

Bones smiled, "Deal."


	52. This Better Be Good

"This better be good," Bones groaned. Jamie wasn't in the habit of waking him up at two in the morning but she couldn't resist, not after the message she just received. It was very good. She handed him her PADD.

"Read that," she told him. He blinked his eyes opened and she could see them adjust to the light from the device.

 _…_ _in light of your actions, it has been decided by this board to uphold your battlefield promotion. You are officially granted the rights and privileges of the rank of Captain. You will receive your orders from Admiral Richard Barnett within the next twenty-four hours_ …

"They made you a captain?" She smiled and nodded at the question.

"They made me a captain." Jamie couldn't believe it either. Bones pulled her against his chest and kissed her.

"Congratulations, darlin'."

Jamie smiled, "I feel like I'm gonna piss a bunch of people off."

He chuckled, "You saved all their asses, let 'em be pissed. Wait 'til we tell the others." Jamie knew that they were all keeping their ranks; Pike had hinted as much when she went to see him in the hospital a few days before. Jamie figured that he was putting his team together for when he was back on his feet but now, she wasn't so sure. "

You think they'll give me a ship?"

Bones shrugged, "They might. I don't know."

Jamie nodded against his chest, "Will you go with me, wherever they send me?" 

"Nowhere I'd rather be, darlin'. Now go back to bed. We have somewhere to be tomorrow," he told her.

"Bones," she whispered into the dark.

"Yea, darlin'?"

She kissed his neck, "I'm a Captain." He chuckled and rolled them both over so that he was on top of her.

"You aren't gonna let me sleep are you, Captain?" Bones asked with a smirk.

Jamie looked up at him in the dark, "Say that again, it's really hot."

She could see the smile cross his features, "What, me calling you Captain?" She nodded as he slid the shirt over her head, "Captain Kirk. Are you gonna let me sleep?"

Jamie wrapped her legs around him, "Sleep is so overrated, Bones."

He chuckled and kissed her neck, "True." They didn't get much sleep at all.

* * *

Everyone left in the third and fourth year classes fit in the assembly hall, it was really sad. Jamie looked around and noticed that their families were all there too. The McCoy's and Kirk's stuck together since she and Bones introduced them to each other when they got there a week ago. Peter, Alexander and Joanna were inseparable; the little girl looked out for the young boys like she was their big sister. Jamie also spotted the Mitchell's, who were sitting next to her brother. They were a nice couple who stood by their daughter-in-law and their son's friends. Jamie knew Gaila would be a Mitchell for life. The woman who currently occupied her thoughts reached over, grabbed her hand and whispered.

"Do you know what this is about?" Jamie shook her head at Gaila.

"No clue," she whispered to her friend.

Admiral Barnett got started by giving a speech about honor and valor. He talked about dedication to service and made most of them cry. Then he looked at her, "This assembly calls Captain Jamie Teresa Kirk." Jamie looked at Bones and at Uhura; they both smiled. Jamie felt like she'd been set up, the look Spock gave her when she passed him confirmed it.

"Sir," Jamie stood in front of the admiral.

"Captain Kirk, your inspirational valor and supreme dedication to your comrades is in keeping with the highest traditions of service. And reflect utmost credit to yourself, your crew and the Federation. It is my honor to award you with this commendation." Barnett pinned the medal to her uniform. Jamie wasn't expecting any of this. The promotion was beyond anything she could think of but this was something else. "Per Starfleet regulation two-eight-four-five-five you are hereby directed to report to Admiral Pike, commanding officer, USS Enterprise, for duty as his relief." What? Command of the Enterprise. They just made her a captain and now she was getting the flagship. Are they insane? Jamie stepped away from Barnett and walked over to the newly promoted admiral.

She stood at attention in front of Pike, "I relieve you, sir."

He smiled, "I am relieved." He reached up to shake her hand, Jamie took his and felt him squeeze.

"This is your fault, sir… Thank you."

Pike smiled, "Congratulations, Captain. You have a proud father, kid. No matter what." He winked at her and she nodded. Jamie turned to look at her friends who all smiled and gave her thumbs up. A bunch of people wanted to talk to her or shake her hand but they got beat by a little boy.

"Aunt Jamie!" Peter collided with her and wrapped his arms around her legs. "My aunt is a hero," he told the older officers who tried to get to her. Jamie picked him up and shook hands with one arm occupied by her nephew as he played with her medal.

* * *

She skipped the reception and she wasn't alone. There was a bar near campus that most of the cadets went to all the time, that's where they went after Aury, Donna and Ella took the kids to the apartment. "When I first met Brax, he poked me in the side and called me squishy… then he laughed and pounded his chest in that way he used to do. I knew instantly that he was gonna be my friend. I can't believe he's gone," Jamie said to her friends, Sam and Fred. They were tossing stories around about Gary, Brax, Lee and Kevin.

"I remember when I met your friend, Kelso… I thought I was looking in a mirror," Sam told them. Jamie laughed, they all thought that the two men looked alike but to hear one of them say it was something different.

Bones shook his head, "I hated Gary. Well, I didn't really hate him…"

Gaila laughed, "You hated that he got to Jamie before you drummed up the courage. He told me that if you would've said something, he would've backed off. They weren't a couple." Bones looked between the two women.

Jamie smiled at Gaila, "I was right, Gai."

The Orion nodded, "Yep, men. Even when they win they still gotta beat their chests… at least Braxim made it cool." They all laughed at the look Bones gave them.

Jamie held up her drink, "To Braxim, the man was truly one of a kind. And Lee, who made us laugh and kept us honest. To Gary, the flirt who met and married his match. And to Kevin…" Jamie's words got caught in her throat.

Bones finished for her, "To Kevin, our little brother and the only person as tough as Jim." Everybody raised a glass and toasted their lost friends. The group started talking about their friends some more when Jamie took a glimpse out the window and spotted a man leaning against the wall across the street. She grabbed her jacket and whispered to Bones where she was going.

"I don't see you for years and now you're popping up all over the place. I saw you earlier, by the way."

He smiled, "What can I say, J.T.? Wanted to see my favorite girl get her commendation. Congratulations, Captain." Trip put his arm over her shoulders as they walked down the street for a little while.

"It's surreal, one day everything is… what it is and the next… most of our friends are dead and a whole planet is gone. I'm sorry about Vulcan, Trip. I wish there was something more I could've done."

He chuckled, "You did everything you could. Don't start blaming yourself." Trip laughed, "I will miss that house though."

She smirked, "You mean my house?"

He nodded, "Yep. How you and the gang holding up? I heard about your friends."

"We're holding. It sucks but the only option is to 'accept the things we can't change' or however that saying goes."

They headed back towards the bar, "You and your friends are the best of us. Back when Jon took the NX-01 out, he had to recruit from all over the place to put the crew together. We had all kinds of growing pains but you... you attract greatness. Your friends from Tarsus, the friends you made here, me, Hoshi, Pike. You surround yourself with amazing people who are willing to lay down their lives to do the right thing. No matter what happens, remember that. I better get you back to your doctor."

Jamie smiled, "He has a name, Charles."

He nodded, "That you never use. Tell him I said hi." Trip kissed her on the forehead, "All joking aside, you did good. I'm proud of you." And just like that, he was gone again.


	53. It's a Surprise, Darlin'

"It's a surprise, darlin'," Bones told her.  Jamie looked at him. Who was this person and where was her Bones? They were all finally granted leave, Bones told her to pack a bag and not worry about the rest. Jamie asked him a million questions but his lips were sealed.

"But Sam, Aury and the boys…"

He cut her off, "Already know what's going on. Now, can you finish packing that bag? We gotta go." Jamie did as he told her, grumbling about bossy men the whole time.

"Is that what I sound like?" Jamie nodded at his question.

Bones chuckled, "You are a saint for putting up with me."

She laughed, "You have no idea sometimes, sweetheart." Jamie leaned into him and kissed him. She didn't know where they were going because instead of a shuttle, they were heading to the transporter, "Bones, you hate this thing."

He took a deep breath, "Yes, but I'll suck it up." Whatever was going on must be big if he was ignoring this hatred for the transporter. Bones ushered Jamie onto the pad before talking with the transporter operator. He hopped up next to her. One minute they're in San Francisco, the next they're in Georgia.

"Bones, this is the big secret? We were coming home anyway." He shook his head and pulled her around the house.

"That is," he told her. Jamie followed his line of sight to the old barn that he showed her. She couldn't believe her eyes; the small barn looked like it had been cleaned up and there were light yellow flowers and white twinkling lights strung up over a seating area in front of it.

Jamie looked at Bones, "A wedding?"

He smiled and nodded, "Keep going."

Jamie thought about it again, "Our wedding?"

Bones nodded again, "You told me 'anytime'. I pick today at sunset. All our family in the same place isn't gonna happen too often, especially since everyone but my family lives and works off-planet. So, I thought that since we're all together that we could do it now." She chuckled, that was very true.

"One problem…"

"We have your dress, sweetie," Aury said, obviously reading her thoughts. Jamie looked up to find Mama Ella, Aury, Donna, Nyota, Gaila and Joanna on the porch.

"You think we'd let you get married in uniform if we could do something about it?" her green friend asked.

Jamie smiled, "Actually, I was thinking jeans. You're all in on this?"

Joanna came hopping down the stairs to her, "Uncle Sam and all the guys too. They put up all the pretty lights themselves." The little girl grabbed her hand, "See you later, daddy. Jamie's gotta get dressed. And we have to have a conversation." Jamie caught Bones' look of pure amusement. He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss before she was pulled away by his nine-year-old daughter.

Jo dragged Jamie up to Mama Ella's room where she spotted her dress, it was gorgeous. Jamie walked over and ran her fingers along the hem. The dress was strapless, made out of tulle and lace; it looked breezy even while hanging. There was a thin belt made out of the same tulle with pale yellow jewels sown into it. Jamie could tell that the dress was short; it would stop under her knees. Donna smiled when Jamie turned to look at them.

"The tulle is from my dress, the lace is from mama's. Aurelan made the belt. Something old," her soon-to-be sister-in-law told her. Jamie smiled and nodded.

Uhura stepped closer with a gift bag, "You know my thing is shoes, so Gaila and I got these."

The bright-eyed bride opened the bag, "Cowboy boots?"

Gaila shrugged, "You hate heels, Jamie. It was these or a pair of yellow Converses… we got those too, by the way, take 'em on your honeymoon. The boots fit the whole barn thing better. Something new, as your tradition goes."

* * *

Jamie hopped in the sonic and then sat in a robe while her sister-in-law put curls in her hair and her linguist friend did her make-up. They all took turns getting dressed while they got her ready. Mama Ella just sat with a smile on her face, Jamie could see her in the mirror. "You alright Mama Ella?"

The older woman smiled at her, "Never better, child. My Leo picked right this time." Ella was going to make her cry. Jamie knew that Jocelyn's wedding to Bones was more like 'The Jocelyn Show' than a wedding for two people. Jamie really didn't care about the details as long as the important people were there and she got Bones.

"Can I have a minute with Jamie?" the nine year old in the room asked. Everyone looked over at Joanna.

Jamie nodded, "Only thing left is the dress and the somethings borrowed and blue."

Mama Ella handed Jamie a small jewelry box, "I want those back, Joanna will explain." Ella pulled the other women from the room, "Come on, let the girl talk to her mama."

"Those are grandma's favorite earrings," Jo told her. Jamie opened the box and sure enough, there was a pair of sapphire, diamond and pearl drop earrings. The sapphire was at the top, than five small diamonds led to a pearl. Jamie had seen them on Mama Ella a few times before, she felt honored to wear them.

"How do they look?"

Jo smiled, "Good… Jamie you love my dad with all your heart, right?"

Jamie took a breath, "Mostly, I mean there's room for you and Pete and Alex and Sam and Ny... you get the idea. I love your dad with most of my heart; I had to leave a little bit of room for the rest of you."

Joanna laughed at that, "Just don't break him like my mother did." Only person that didn't like their mother more than Jamie, was Joanna. It's one thing to throw your child away but another to throw them away and show up all the time to rub the fact in their face.

Jamie smiled at the little girl who was so much like her, "I won't, I promise. Want to help me with the dress?"

Jo nodded, "Can I ask you something?"

Jamie nodded at her, "You can ask me anything, anytime." Joanna took a breath as she zipped Jamie up.

"What grandma said… that you're… Can I call you mama?"

Jamie felt the tears well up, "Yea, if you want to. I'd be honored." Jamie kissed the little girl on the top of her head and they looked into the mirror.

"Daddy's gonna have a heart attack," the kid declared. They both laughed as there was a knock on the door, it was Sam.

"I'm surrounded by beautiful people. I can't figure out who looks prettier today," her brother said.

Joanna smiled, "You better say mama and Aunt Aury."

Sam laughed, "I love this kid. You sure she's not yours?" Jamie and Jo smiled as she answered her brother.

"She is mine in the only way that counts." Jamie tapped her chest and Sam nodded.

"You ready, sis?"

"To marry Bones? I've been ready." Jamie, Joanna and Sam went downstairs and headed over to the barn, it was almost time. Jo had ran ahead of them when Jamie heard a voice behind her.

"Well, look at you. Can I have a moment with your sister, Doctor Kirk?" Sam looked at the man then at her.

"I've seen you before, you've been following her around," Sam said, moving to 'protect' her.

Trip shrugged, "Sorta, I'm supposed to be dead. The fact that I'm not is classified, I shouldn't even tell you. Your sister is one of the only people who knows who I really am and I made her a promise a long time ago about keeping an eye on her, even if I don't tell her I'm there. I also promised that I'd be at her wedding to the cranky surgeon."

"I'll be fine, Sammy," she told her brother. Sam looked at them both and then nodded.

"Holler if you need me," he whispered before he walked towards the barn.

Jamie laughed as she looped her arm with Trip's, "Bones comm'ed you, didn't he?"

Trip nodded, "Said this was when and where. You look amazing. Then again, you always do."

Jamie blushed, "Thanks. So are you gonna hide in the shadows?"

"Nope, I'm my nephew, Owen Tucker and I take after my Uncle Trip. The cover story is that I served with Pike and I've known you since you were a kid. Everyone who knows who I am was warned," he told her.

Jamie looked at him, "Where's the real Owen?"

Trip smirked, "On Andor. Now, are we gonna chat like little girls or are we gonna get you to Doctor Grumpy?" Jamie laughed and pulled him along the path.

* * *

It was decided that since the wedding was so small that Sam would stand with Jamie and Donna would stand with Bones. Admiral Archer was officiating and Pike walked –hovered- down the aisle with Jamie. This was the first time that Jamie noticed that Sam, Bones and all the guys weren't in suits or uniforms. She looked at her fiancé, he had on a pair of dark blue dress pants and a pale yellow shirt, he was even wearing a tie. His eyes locked with hers and Jamie doesn't remember seeing anything else.

"Hi, Bones."

He smiled, "Wow, darlin'. Just... wow. You ready?" Jamie shook her head and handed her flowers to Sam. She stepped closer to Bones and untied his tie. She tossed it over to Sulu and unbuttoned the top few buttons of Bones' shirt. She also messed up his hair a little, "You hate ties. Now, I'm ready."

"Told ya'll she was gonna pull that tie off," Donna whispered as everybody laughed. She got her flowers back from Sam and gave Archer the okay to begin.

"Family and friends, we have been invited here today to share with Jamie and Leonard a very important moment in their lives. These two love each other like something out of a sappy movie and now they have decided to spend their lives bugging the hell out of each other as husband and wife." Everybody laughed; this is why Jamie loved Archer, even though this is an important event, he still managed to keep the humor. "Now, George, are you sure he's good enough for your little sister?"

Her brother chuckled and nodded, "Yes."

Archer looked at Donna, "Donna, how about you, she good enough for your baby brother?"

Donna smiled, "She is."

Archer smiled, "Good. Now that we got that outta the way, I'm going to be serious for a moment. Someone once told me that marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person. I think we can all see that Jamie and Leonard have that down. No matter what happens you two always find new pieces of each other to love. You rediscover what you already know about each other and love some more. As far as I'm concerned today is a formality and a party. Leonard, your vows are first."

Bones nodded and looked into Jamie's eyes, "So, I'm winging it here. I've been trying to write my vows for a while but nothing came to me and I realized that it's you. There just aren't any words for you and then there are a million words for you. I told you, you're a contradiction. You are brilliant and beautiful and daring and protective and all these things I wish I could be. You scare me, and confound me, and excite me, and challenge me, and encourage me and I don't know what any of this is without you. I can't promise you the universe, Jim, but I can promise to stand right next to you as we go searching for it. I love you, you crazy, wonderful, spectacular woman." Jamie had tears running down her face, she knew that's how he felt but it was rare to hear him say it.

"Your turn, Jamie," Archer told her.

"No matter what was going on or where I was, I never felt like I belonged, every day until the day I met you. You made me see myself clearly for the first time in my life. I didn't care about what anyone else had to say because you… you remind me every day that the best I can be is who I am. I remember the first day that I fell in love with you. I got my ass kicked in one of the combat courses and the instructor ordered me to medical. I don't remember much, not even how I got there. I do remember you yelled at me the whole time about doing stupid stuff and getting hurt and me being me, I mumbled that nobody cared. And you turned that glare on me and told me that you cared, then you told me to shut up so you could fix my broken nose. After that, I realized that more you grumbled at me, the more I scared the crap out of you. So, I try not to get hurt, just because I didn't want to hurt you. I'm not perfect. I'm just me, there are a lot of things I don't know but the one thing that I do know all the way down to my bones, is that I love you. I promise that no matter what happens or where we go, that won't ever change." Jamie reached up and wiped the tear of Bones' face, "We both can't cry."

He chuckled, "Says who?"

"Alright you saps. We got one more thing to do." They exchanged rings and then Archer looked at them, "By the power granted to me as an Admiral in the United Federation of Planets Starfleet, I now pronounce you husband and wife." They smiled and Bones pulled her in for a kiss.

"Get a room," came from Sulu.

"That's my sister," was Sam, Scotty and Chekov.

Archer smiled, "Ladies and Gents… I give you Jamie and Leonard. God help us all."


	54. Where Are We?

"Where are we?" Bones asked. Jamie smiled at her husband.

"You're telling me that you didn't know about this?"

He shook his head, "I was told that our honeymoon was planned and nothing more than that. I wasn't gonna argue with him." Jamie smirked and took a look at the PADD in her hand, this whole thing was Trip's idea of a wedding gift.

"We're in Tuscany… Florence to be exact. That building over there is Hotel Loggiato Dei Serviti; it was a monastery a few hundred years ago. That's where this thing says we're staying. Six whole days of just you and me… and maybe we'll look around the city at some point." He kissed the hand he was holding and ran his finger along her engagement ring and wedding band. "Let's go check in. Wanna look around after that?"

Bones shook his head, "Maybe later, darlin'."

After their wedding and reception, Jamie changed out of her wedding dress and into a blue dress that was oddly –but not so oddly- similar. They grabbed their bags, included an extra one that Gaila and Uhura packed for her, " _You'll thank us later_ ," then Archer handed her a PADD with a message from Trip –who disappeared during the reception- telling them to enjoy. Bones sucked up his hatred for the transporter again for another beam out. It took Jamie all of five seconds to realize where they were and Trip's message confirmed it. Jamie loved Italy, the school she went to for computer programming, Università di Bologna, was less than two hours north of Florence.

"I think I might actually owe him for this one," Bones whispered to her. The place was gorgeous, just like she expected. They checked in and were led to their room.

"This room is beautiful, the whole place is and check out the view." Jamie looked around but Bones sat on the edge of the bed and watched her.

"I think my view is a bit better than yours, darlin'." She turned and looked at him.

"That so, sweetheart?"Jamie stepped closer to him.

Bones nodded, "Yea." Jamie ran her fingers along his jaw.

"I don't know if I agree with that," she whispered. Bones caught her hand and kissed her fingertips, then the inside of her wrist.

"We'll just have to agree to disagree, Misses McCoy." Oh, she knows that look.

"Len… I _realllly_ like this dress," she whispered as he slowly stood then kissed her neck and along her jaw.

"If you want to keep it, I suggest you take it off." Jamie smiled as she remembered the words from the first time they were together; it seemed like a lifetime ago. In some ways, it was.

"Gimme a hand?" she asked.

Bones smiled as she turned around in front of him. He ran his hand along her waist and up her back before unzipping the dress. Jamie felt his fingers on the newly exposed skin as they let the dress pool at her feet; she didn't get a chance to step out of it because as soon as it hit the floor, she was facing him. Bones pulled her into his arms and closed the distance between his lips and hers; he devoured her mouth, his hands caressed her body. Jamie reluctantly pulled back.

"What's wrong, darlin'?"

She smiled, "You have on way too many clothes, Doctor McCoy." Jamie slowly unbuttoned his shirt and pushed the pale yellow fabric off his toned body and onto the floor. Bones closed his eyes as she ran her hands over his skin, down his chest and to his waistband. Jamie unzipped his pants and he practically kicked them off. He reached his arm around her and unhooked the strapless bra that she was wearing. "Bones," every touch set a jolt of electricity through her. He gently laid her on the bed and Jamie could feel his hands slide her underwear of her body.

She moved to kick her boots off but he stopped her, "I like those, leave 'em on."

Jamie smiled, "I'll have to remember that, sweetheart."

Bones kissed the underside of her jaw, then her throat and then the hollow of her neck. He worked his way down her body, kissing and caressing her skin. Bones pulled her in for a soul-searing kiss as he slowly joined their bodies together. She sucked in a breath then released it as he began sliding in and out of her. The muscles under her hands bunched and shivered. Jamie reveled in the feel of him against her body, his warmth seeping through her. She wrapped her legs around him, pulling them closer.

"You don't even realize how beautiful you are, darlin'," he whispered against her skin. He kissed her neck, "I got you, Jim." His movements brought her closer and closer to the edge. Jamie's heart swelled as the emotions of the last day came rushing through her. This wonderful man was all hers.

"Len," it came out as a sob. Her feelings, their movements, it was all pulling her under. Shivers coursed through her as he pulled her over the edge, Bones followed close behind her. "You okay?" Bones rested his head on her shoulder but kept his weight off of her.

"Better than okay, darlin'," he lifted his head and looked at her face. She smiled at him as she carded her fingers through his hair. "What's that smile for, darlin'?" Jamie closed her eyes/

"You. I'm happy because I get to spend forever with you," she told him. Bones chuckled as he moved off of her to pull her boots off.

"Yes you do." He pulled the blanket over them both and wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey, Bones?" she whispered against his chest.

"Yea, darlin'?"

"I love you." She could feel him chuckle and pull her closer.

"I love you, too, Misses McCoy," he said. Jamie liked being called by his name. They hadn't talked about it yet but Jamie decided that she would keep Kirk for the public and legally carry both names.

Depending on where you were from, changing your name after getting married was a tradition. Where Bones was from, it was usually a given that the wife would take her husband's name. She hadn't told Bones yet but she didn't think he'd mind. So much of her life was on display that she wanted to keep the most important part of it under wraps. She would never deny her marriage if outright asked but she wasn't volunteering information; she didn't get the choice when she was a kid but she had a choice now.

"Stop thinkin', darlin' and get some rest. We are just gettin' started." She smiled and pressed a kiss to his chest. Jamie felt his arms tighten around her as she drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The hotel is a real hotel in Florence.


	55. What Does That Mean?

"What does that mean?" Bones asked. She smiled at him.

"What 'colazione'? It just means breakfast. Around here that's usually expresso or cappuccino and a pastry, maybe some fruit or yogurt but nothing big like we do back home. You would've known that sooner if we didn't lock ourselves in that room," she teased. He tightened his hold around her waist and kissed her neck as they walked down the street, "Don't you dare."

Bones smiled, "Don't know what you're talkin' 'bout, darlin'."

Jamie smiled, "Yes you do." He decided to go back to the original subject.

"So, you can get breakfast in a bar?"

She chuckled, "A bar here and a bar at home aren't really the same thing but yeah, you can get breakfast at a bar."

After four days they finally emerged from the hotel. She talked Bones into walking around Florence, Jamie thought he might be a little grumpy but instead he held onto her as they explored and he asked a million questions. She even got a couple holos of him smiling, she sent them to Mama Ella before he could delete them; grumbling about his reputation. The pair took a tour of the Museum of San Marco and went to see Michelangelo's David before they had a late lunch.

Bones looked nervous, which bothered Jamie a little, "You know that's not a look that your wife wants to see on your honeymoon. What's wrong?"

He smiled, "Nothing's wrong. I just wanna talk to you about something." Jamie looked at him.

"Sounds serious. Should I be worried?" Jamie asked.

The doctor pulled his sunglasses off, "No, no more than usual. I wanted to bring up a conversation you had with Joanna. You think I didn't notice that she called you mama? Or that my mama says the same thing? Now granted, mama has been referring to her as your daughter for a while, more since dad died but Jo called you mama during the wedding and Donna said you two talked about it."

"She asked if she could. I told her if she wanted to, I don't mind. I didn't think to ask you if it was okay," she told him.

Bones chuckled, "It's more than okay with me. As a matter of fact, I was wondering if you want to make it official." Adopt Joanna; Jamie didn't even have to think about it.

"You think she'll be okay with that? Would you be? I'm not exactly 'mom' material. Closest thing I had to a mom was Hoshi… I have no idea what to do. What if I mess up? And what about Jocelyn?"

Bones laughed at her, "First, Jocelyn signed away her rights before I joined Starfleet so it doesn't matter what she thinks. Second, have you met you? You don't mess up, you come close sometimes but you refuse to fail. Besides, you are the most maternal non-parent I've ever met. You take care of everybody, Jim."

  She shrugged, "That's different. I mean, you guys don't actually need me."

He shook his head, "Don't do that. Don't downplay your worth, darlin'. I need you. We all do in our own ways and none of us is afraid to admit it. My kid doesn't just connect with everybody, she loves you and you love her. I watched you, the way you are with her, Jim… you both just light up. It's like you have your own little world together and you just let the rest of us visit. You're such a good mom and you don't even realize that you're doing it. Me and Jo had this conversation months ago. You're already her mom, Jim. So, do you want to make it legal?" Jamie didn't even consider that Bones would want her to be Jo's mom, or that Joanna would want that too.

"I… I would love to. You won't let me mess up, right?"

He kissed the hand he was holding, "Course not, darlin'." Bones laughed and Jamie raised an eyebrow before he explained, "You run into danger, command ships and fight Romulans but our daughter is what scares you." She laughed; he had a point.

They spent some more time wandering around Florence before they decided to head back to the hotel. The second the door closed, they were on each other. Bones pinned Jamie to the door. She sighed, "We're never gonna get this outta our systems, are we?"

Bones chuckled against her skin, "I hope not, darlin'." They spent the rest of the day like they spent the other four.

* * *

"I don't wanna go back," she wanted to stay right where she was, which was laying across her husband's chest at the moment.

Bones chuckled, "You have a ship to get to and we have a daughter to see. We'll come back, okay?"

Jamie smiled and kissed his jaw, "Okay. Will we venture outside more?"

He smirked, "Doubt it."

* * *

The second they checked out, Bones' comm beeped, "McCoy." He shook his head and smiled, "It's your _uncle_ , darlin'." Jamie assumed that it was for their beam out.

"Hey, you two. Have fun?" Trip asked as they materialized.

"Yes, Trip, we did. Thank you. Nice ship, by the way," Jamie said.

"It's the ship we got from Redux. I'll send you the specs, J.T. Comm me when you see what I see," her friend told her.

She nodded, "Are you keeping us?"

Trip chuckled, "I'd love too but your kid would kick me. She scares me, I swear she's so… you. See ya soon, lovebirds." He gave them both quick hug and beamed them back to Georgia.

"Daddy! Mama!" Joanna came running out of the house and collided with Jamie, who picked her up.

"You're way too big for this Jo," Jamie told her.

The girl shrugged, "Yep… but you love me too much to put me down." Jamie laughed but Joanna was right, she shifted her weight but kept her hold on the nine-year-old. They went inside to find Mama Ella sitting with Donna, Fred and Gaila.

"What are you still doin' here, chica?" Jamie asked.

Gaila smiled, "Never left, Mama Ella told me I could stay. I would've just gone back to San Fran by myself anyway. I guess I could've gone with Hiri but Mama Ella's offer included hanging out with Joanna. Besides, I'm still waiting on orders." Jamie sat between her sister-in-law and her green sister with Joanna in her lap.

"Only because your new CO was on her honeymoon." Jamie smiled as a look crossed Gaila's face. "You didn't really think I was leaving this planet without you, Gaila?"

The Orion looked at her, "But everybody else…"

Jamie shrugged, "Was already on the Enterprise, upholding active orders is easy. I had to get clearance for you and a couple of the people you beamed over with, I managed to get seven of you from the Hood and four from the Truman. The other ships were either total losses or the people I wanted left the fleet. You were at the top of my list though. Now I'm just waiting for Spock to make up his mind and my life will be complete." She asked her Vulcan friend to be her first officer; she was waiting on his answer. She didn't even know where he went for leave but Gaila did; he was in Kenya with Ny.

"So, how was Italy?" Fred asked as soon as Joanna ran off. "Did you actually see Florence?" Jamie blushed bright red and they all laughed. Bones rolled his eyes.

"Like you have room to talk," he told his brother-in-law.

Gaila smirked and brushed the hair away from Jamie's neck, "In all fairness, if I married Jamie, I wouldn't let her outta bed either." The look on Fred's face was priceless; Jamie upped the ante by taking Donna's hand and kissing it. "What do you think, Don?" the Orion asked. Fred shifted in his seat as his wife giggled and played along, resting her hand on Jamie's knee.

"I have to agree with Gaila," Donna said. Bones didn't say anything, he just watched as they made Fred uncomfortable, touching each other and giggling.

Mama Ella laughed, "You brought that on yourself, Fred." He nodded, stood up and grabbed his wife.

"We'll be back." Jamie and Gaila burst into laughter.

"That never gets old," Jamie said.

Bones laughed, "What am I gonna do with both of you on the same ship?"


	56. I Can't Believe I Agreed to This

"I can't believe I agreed to this," her husband grumbled.

Jamie chuckled, "Hey, Bonesy. Buckle up." He rolled his eyes at her but didn't say anything else.

It took Jamie, Scotty, Chekov and the engineering team a couple months to put the ship back together and the Enterprise was as good as new; better considering the upgrades that Scotty and Jamie added. The senior staff stayed the same, with the addition of Gaila as assistant science officer, she'll be the chief if Spock doesn't show.

Sulu turned and looked at her, "Firing thrusters and impulse engines at your command, ma'am."

Chekov smiled, "Veapons systems and shields on standby."

Uhura spoke from the communications station, "Dock control reports ready, Captain." Jamie smiled and sat in the command chair.

"Scotty, how we doin'?" she asked after hitting the comm down to engineering.

Her friend responded quickly, "Dilithum chambers at maximum, Captain." Jamie smiled as she heard him tell someone –Keenser, if she had to guess- to get down off of something.

"Mister Sulu, prepare to engage thrusters." He acknowledged her orders just as Spock stepped off the turbolift.

"Permission to enter the bridge, Captain?" the Vulcan asked.

Jamie smiled, "Permission granted, Commander." Spock was here! He had disappeared on her for a while and Jamie had to entertain the idea of Scotty or Sulu being first officer.

"As you have yet to select a first officer, respectfully I would like to submit my candidacy. Should you desire I can provide character references." Spock must've been reading her mind because he knew exactly what she was thinking.

Jamie smirked, "Took you long enough. It would be my honor, Commander." He took his seat at the science station as Jamie ordered Sulu to take them out.

She looked over at her husband, "Admit it, Bones. This is pretty awesome."

He smiled, "I'm not admitting to anything." Jamie chuckled.

* * *

Their first official mission as the crew of the Enterprise was to take medical supplies to Makus III. It wouldn't have been so bad, except they were given a babysitter in the form of Federation High Commissioner Ferris.

Everything was going smoothly until they came across Murasaki 312. It was an unexplored quasar-like formation. Ferris had a bitch-fit about keeping on schedule. Jamie informed him that she had standing orders to study any unusual phenomena, this qualified. Spock took command of the shuttle Galileo, with him was Bones, Scotty, Lieutenants Boma, Gaetano, Latimer and Yeoman Rand. She pouted at Bones before they left, " _First away mission on my ship and I'm babysitting a cranky commissioner_."

"Captain, I lost them. Their last transmission was about being off-course then they cut out," Uhura informed her.

Jamie looked at her youngest crew member, "Chekov, scan for them."

He shook his head, "I'm getting nothing. Zhe scanners are blank, Keptin. Ionization iz disrupting all systems."

Ferris chimed in from behind her, "This is what I was worried about, we can't afford this kind of delay." Jamie had a retort on the tip of her tongue but Uhura saved her from saying something to Ferris.

"Captain, there's a M Class planet in the middle of that thing. Taurus II."

The young captain nodded, "Sulu?" 

The pilot punched commands into his station, "On it, ma'am." Jamie ordered Uhura to keep checking for communications from the surface.

"Nothing, Captain," the communications officer told her. Come on, sweetheart, help us out. Jamie knew he couldn't hear her thought but Spock might hear Ny; crazy Vulcan bonds. Jamie ordered the shuttle bay to prep for a visual search and rescue.

Ferris opened his big mouth, "You think that'll work?" She honestly had no idea but she wasn't telling him that.

"I won't stop until the last possible second," she told him.

Ferris glared at her, "Not one second longer, Captain. Is that understood? Because if it isn't, I suggest you look up Starfleet Regulation Book nineteen, Section four-thirty-three, paragraph twelve. Despite your very short career, you have a reputation for _neglecting_ protocol." She couldn't believe his nerve. She knew the regulation that his was referring to; it was the regulation concerning the ability of ranking Federation officials to give direct orders to Starfleet officers.

"I'm aware of the regulations and I know about your authority. Most of my _reputation_ is crap but the one thing that remains true: I _never_ give up on my people."

* * *

Twenty-four hours rolled by but they hadn't found anything yet. Jamie was not giving up on them yet, Bones, Scotty and Spock were all just a stubborn as she was; they'd die before they quit. Her husband and her brothers are not the guys who give up, even when persistence is no longer 'logical'. Ferris pulled her from her thoughts.

"In twenty-four hours, I will invoke my authority and order this ship to resume it's heading to Makus Three."

Jamie shook her head, "I love the optimism, Commissioner. I have faith in my people." It was one of the few things she truly believed in.

The next day, Ferris made good on his threat, "You're out of time, Kirk." It killed her to agree with him but there were millions of people counting on the supplies they were carrying. Ferris didn't have to rub it in, "It grieves me to say that me must call off the search for your missing crew. Mister Spock in particular was an irreplaceable officer…"

"Is," Jamie cut him off.

"Excuse me, Captain?"

She looked up at him from her chair, "Commander Spock is an irreplaceable officer. I'm not writing his obituary yet. As much as it pains me, you're right, we're out of time. Mister Chekov, set course for Makus Three. Mister Sulu, full impulse until we're out of the system." They both looked at her, "I know what you're thinking guys, but we're out of time. None of the crew on that shuttle would want people to suffer or die because of them, Bones and Spock, especially." They both nodded and followed her orders.

"I take no pleasure in abandoning your missing crew but there are…"

Jamie cut Ferris off, "Millions counting on those supplies, I am well aware of that, Commissioner. Just do me a favor and don't talk to me about my crew." She was so sick of him that it wasn't even funny. Jamie was thinking of ways to get rid of him without getting in a bunch of trouble.

"Keptin, one of zhe shuttles was just hijacked from the bay." She looked at Chekov, this is just what she needs today.

"Uhura, where are…?" Jamie stopped when she realized that the communications station was empty. She knew exactly what her friend was up too. She really should've thought of it first. "Sulu, turn us around." He chuckled and got to work on steering the ship back the way they came.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kirk?" Ferris was such a pain in her ass, if Bones was here, he'd hypo his into next week for her.

"Lieutenant Uhura has commandeered a shuttle to go after our missing crew herself. I'm not leaving her out here too." Ferris huffed and glared at her.

"Commandeered my ass, she stole a shuttle. I'll have her commission for this. I demand that you continue on your assigned mission. I have authority here according to Starfleet regul…"

"Are you really quoting regs at me on my bridge? Okay. Starfleet Regulation Article seven, Section twenty-three, lines eighty-nine through ninety-two state that 'In the event of the reassignment of command on a starship by a Starfleet Commissioner due to extraneous circumstances not involving dereliction of duty by the ship's captain, said captain reserves the right, should subsequent events dictate, to resume command if it becomes necessary to ensure the safety of the ship and it's crew.' We are down a first officer, the chief medical officer, the chief engineering officer, and the chief communications officer, not to mention two shuttles that are vital to the full functionality of this ship. I'm getting my crew back, if you want to stand over there and bitch about it, be my guest, but command of this vessel belongs to me." She turned in her chair and ignored him. Her PADD beeped:

 _Starfleet Network Subspace Text Communication_   
_From: Sulu SP982-0134 KCG_   
_To: Kirk-McCoy SC937-0176 CEC_

 _Sulu: That was seriously badass._  
Kirk-McCoy: I try.  
Sulu: Don't worry about that douchebag. We got your back.  
Kirk-McCoy: Thanks, Hiri  
Sulu: Anytime.


	57. Does He Ever Shut Up?

"Does he ever shut up," Bones whispered from next to her. Jamie slowly shook her head and tried to hold in the chuckles. Ferris was coming close to getting dropped on his ass by her first and chief medical officers; Sulu told them about the last two days and they weren't happy. Jamie was actually scared for the man; Spock is not an easy person to piss off. Jamie never, ever, wants to be on the receiving end of his rage, she saw it once and it's not pretty. Ferris was still talking to her but by this point she had tuned him out.

"...Wait until I inform Starfleet Command. I don't care how much pull you think you have, Miss Kirk." Yadda, yadda, yadda.

"Mister Sulu assures me that we'll be there with time to spare. I look forward to reading your report but in the meantime, I have more important things to do." Jamie left the conference room before he could stop her and Bones was right behind her.

"I'm surprised that you didn't kill him while we were gone," Bones said to her.

Jamie laughed, "It was close, sweetheart... so very close. Me and Sulu were plotting how to get away with it." He smiled.

"That's my girl. So, more important things to do?" Bones asked her, she smiled as they walked and tapped a message on her PADD to Spock that he and Uhura were confined to quarters –together- for a little while. She looked at her husband.

"Yep. I haven't slept in two days. You wanna come cuddle with me?" she asked.

He chuckled, "I'd like nothing better, darlin'." Jamie wished that they had more energy but sleeping in Bones' arms was enough for her... at least until they woke up.

They filled her in on everything that happened on Taurus II. She was saddened to learn that they lost Latimer but she was also proud of her officers. They encountered a species and held their own while Scotty and Rand fixed the shuttle. It still took a boost from Uhura's shuttle to get them out of there but Jamie wasn't picky about the details. She took the heat for Uhura's impromptu rescue attempt because there was no fucking way that woman was getting in trouble for rescuing their family. Ferris could do his worst, her crew was safe, that's all she cared about. They also made their delivery of medical supplies –and Ferris- right on time. Jamie was never so happy to get rid of someone in her life and considering that she lived through a massacre, a couple terrorists and a crazy Romulan who destroyed a planet, that's saying a lot.

* * *

They spent the next week patrolling the sector before Spock called her attention to an anomaly that they kept coming across reports for, "Captain, there is an overall pattern of mass insanity on several planets that lead straight to Deneva."

Bones looked at her, "Jim…" She put her hand up to silence him from saying anything. The little sister part of her wants Sam, Aury and the boys to be alright but the soldier in her knows that there is a good chance that they aren't and the last thing she wants to do is turn Bones into a liar if the latter was the case.

"Keep trying to raise them, Uhura," Jamie ordered.

The communications officer nodded, "Yes, Captain."

Jamie looked at her favorite doctor, "Any idea what we're dealing with, Bones?"

He shook his head, "There's no apparent medical reason for any of this, Jim. I'll have a better idea when we get closer."

Sulu turned in his chair, "The sensors are picking up a ship on direct heading to Deneva's sun."

"Intercept, Mister Sulu. Warp eight. Uhura, hail them," she told the lieutenants. It was a ship with one person on-board. They tried to get him to change course but he went into the sun anyway after they caught part of his statement about something being gone and him being free. Jamie had that feeling that this day was about to get worse. She ordered Sulu to get them to Deneva as fast as possible, she needed to figure out what was going on and she had to find her family.

* * *

There was no way she was sitting this out and none of them even tried to stop her,if anything, she had to sit some of them out. Jamie grabbed Zahra, Edwards and Hendorff from security to go with on the away team with her. Bones and Spock both refused to let her go without them either. She left Scotty in command of the ship. Chekov sat in the transporter room waiting for them. She looked at her young friend, "Keep checking the sensors, Chekov. We'll report back if we find something."

"I advise we limit our exposure as to not contract the same affliction," Spock told her. Jamie agreed and ordered that they ready phasers on stun. Chekov beamed them down to the capital city, and Bones started scanning the second they materialized.

"At least the weather is good," he told them. Jamie was uneasy, something was very wrong here.

"There are over a million people in this colony. Where are all the people?" she asked the others. They all looked around, the place was empty but Chekov said that the scans showed that the population was normal. A few minutes later, a group of colonists came out of nowhere screaming 'intruders' and brandishing blunt weapons. Jamie gave the order for them to stun them. After they were down, Bones scanned them. "Bones?"

The doctor looked up at her, "Jim, their nervous systems… it's like they're being violently stimulated, even when they're out cold. We'll need to do more tests."

Jamie heard something, Spock and Zahra heard it too; it sounded like screaming from one of the nearby buildings. Spock's tricorder showed life signs, so they readied their phasers and entered the building. They were in what turned out to be the colony's maintenance tunnels. She felt that tingle crawl up her spine; someone was watching them.

"You. Help me!" a voice called from behind them.

The next thing she heard was Bones, "Hey!"

The women had a hold on him, "Kill me, they're in my head." Hendorff offered, not that Jamie was surprised. The officer got into a fight with her the night Pike got her to join up. Cupcake, as she called the security officer, jumped at fighting with people. At least they were on the same side now. Jamie shook her head and tried to keep the woman calm while Bones loaded a hypospray and sedated her.

"We should get her to the ship, Jim," Bones told her. Jamie looked at her husband and nodded just as Spock spoke from next to her.

"The use of the word 'them' implies that this isn't an illness but a sentient threat," her first officer said. She was thinking that, Spock has a knack for bringing the bad news.

"Edwards, take her to the surface and beam back to the ship. Alert Nurse Chapel that we might have more incoming," she ordered.

"Aye, ma'am," the officer nodded, picked the woman up and headed out. The rest of them continued their search for answers.

"Oh… well… I… damn," she said as they entered a room and found these pink blobs with tentacles clinging to the walls.

"Fascinating," Spock always says that. He stepped further into the room and one of the things jumped on his face.

"Spock!" Jamie ran over to him. "Bones?"

The doctor did a quick assessment of her first officer, "He's alive just unconscious. His vitals are stable but we gotta get him outta here." More of the crazy mobs started to show up just when they need to make a quick exit. Jamie and Bones each pulled one of Spock's arms over their shoulders and carried him together while Hendorff and Zahra phased the crap out of the blobs and the charging people.

"We gotta get topside, ASAP," she said. Of course that was easier said than done. Jamie tried to hail the ship but there was interference. The panel near their feet moved, "Don't tell me they're coming out of the floor, too." Whoever was down there tossed a smoke grenade at the mob.

"Down here!" Jamie knew that voice. Bones climbed down first, Jamie handed him Spock, then she, Zahra and Hendorff climbed down.

"Ma'am, they're attempting to open that hatch, we need to get outta here," Zahra warned. She nodded.

"Man, am I glad to see you, Jimmy," he attempted to hug her but Hendorff stepped closer to her.

"Can we trust him, Captain?" the security officer asked.

"Of course we can, Lieutenant. This is Doctor George Kirk, my older brother," she told him. Sam smirked at her and pulled her into a quick hug.

"I know the fastest way up, we need to get Spock outta here. I can fill you in on what happened once we're safe." Jamie nodded as the led the way, Hendorff and Bones carrying Spock. Her brother didn't say anything and Jamie had a nagging thought in her mind: Where are Aury and the boys?


	58. Jim, I Need You in Sickbay, It's Spock

"Jim, I need you in sickbay, it's Spock," Bones told her over comm. Jamie and her brother looked at each other before sprinting out of her ready room and heading to medical. When they got there, Bones was trying to hold Spock down.

"What happened?" she asked. Her husband looked up at the sound of her voice.

"I got the damn thing off and he started frothing at the mouth. I hypo'd him three times but he's still fighting," Bones told them. Jamie and Sam helped hold the Vulcan down while the drugs did their job. She glanced at her brother and watched a look of sadness and helplessness cross his features. He told her that he didn't know where the creatures came from but he was at the lab when most of the colony went bat-shit crazy. Aury and the boys were trapped at home, he hoped that they were okay but he had no way of knowing for sure and it was killing him.

As soon as Spock drifted off, Jamie looked at her brother, "Do you know what these things are or anything about the force field that knocked out our impulse power?"

He shook his head, "No, I can try to help you figure it out. I got to do something but, Jimmy, we gotta get my family back." She was thinking the same thing. Before she could voice a plan, Spock started speaking.

"… I am… a… Vulcan… I am a… Vulcan… no pain… I am… a… Vulcan… no… pain… I am a Vulcan… I am a Vulcan… I am…" Spock said in a voice that none of them ever heard before.

"What the hell?" Bones took the words right out her mouth.

Jamie looked at her Vulcan brother, "That's just weird."

Sam nodded, "I think he's coming out of it, Doc."

Spock looked at them, "Jamie… Leonard… George. I appear to be retrained. I assure you, I feel perfectly normal."

Jamie touched his arm, "Sorry buddy but you tried to take Bones' head off five minutes ago. We all had to hold you down. We can't risk the safety of the crew." She looked at Bones, who started a scan.

"Vitals appear normal enough but you were in agony and now you seem to be fine," Bones told him.

Spock looked at him, "Pain is simply a thing of the mind that can be controlled." Jamie and Sam looked at each other then at Spock.

"Aren't you only half Vulcan? What about your human side?" Sam asked. "

Indeed. In this case, it may prove to be… problematic. However, I believe my ordeal has provided us with some insight as to the nature of the problem afflicting the colony. While the creature was attached to me, I could… _feel it_ as it tried to influence my mind. This may explain the behavior of the colonists. The creature was _encouraging_ me to act on it's behalf, all the while believing that I was still in control of my actions. If Leonard had not freed me, I fear that I may have acted on it's wishes to take over the ship." That's not good; the looks that Bones and Sam sent her way said the same thing.

"Can you guys figure out what this thing is, or at least how to disable them? I'm gonna take Sulu and Gaila down to the surface to find Aurelan and the boys," Jamie told them.

Bones nodded, "We'll see what we can do, Jim."

Jamie touched her brother's arm, "I'll get them back to you." He nodded. Jamie knew he wanted to go with her but Sam was smart enough to know that he'd just be in the way. He's the lover, she's the fighter. Sam rattled off a set of coordinates near the house and Jamie left sickbay. She had the two lieutenants meet her in the transporter room.

"You think they're okay?" Sulu asked, the worry was clear as day on his face.

Jamie looked at her katana wielding friend, "I hope so, Hiri."

Gaila put a hand on her shoulder, "We'll find them, Jamie." She really hoped her friend was right. She really should've grabbed a security team but the choice she made was two-fold. One, Sulu and Gaila could take care of themselves and two, they would walk through fire for her nephews.

She looked at Lieutenant Kyle, who was manning the transporter, "Energize."

* * *

They ended up down the street from her brother's home; the trio looked around as they made their way to the place her family called home. Jamie punched the code into the door and went in search of her sister-in-law and nephews.

"Aury! Pete! Alex!" she called. The small group split up and went in different directions. Jamie went up the stairs, Sulu checked all the rooms on ground level and Gaila checked the maintenance sub-level.

"Jamie, I got 'em." Gaila found them and a whole bunch of those creatures. The Orion was standing over her family, shooting at the creatures on the wall. Sulu entered the room and picked up Aurelan while Jamie picked up Peter and Gaila grabbed Alex with one arm, still shooting with the other.

"Kirk to Enterprise. Kyle, I need you to beam six straight to medical." 

"I don't know if I can do that, Captain," she heard his voice over the communicator. Her sister-in-law and nephews had those things on their heads too and she didn't know how long they would last. Scotty's voice jumped into the conversation.

"Captain, the interference from the planet has increased, I cannae guarantee that we can safely beam you back. The good news is that Spock and George have a solution. Chekov and I rigged a satellite array to flood the city with ultraviolet waves, the trick is…"

Jamie cut him off, "Later, Scotty. Just beam us up." He acknowledged her order and a moment later they were in sickbay being swarmed by Bones and his staff.

"We got 'em, Jim. Go help Scotty stop those things." Jamie handed her nephew to her husband and went to help her chief engineer. The way he and Chekov set it up, the creatures would lose their hold over the colonist's minds but there was still a risk because of the damage they already caused to people's nervous systems. Jamie hid –yes, hid- in engineering after Scotty and Chekov incapacitated the creatures from orbit. It didn't kill them but it did free everyone from the mental control.

"It was Spock who figured it out. I swear that lad is crazier then you sometimes, he just hides behind his being Vulcan," Scotty said to her.

Jamie chuckled, "Doubtful." Spock was the test subject for this whole thing but he messed up his eyes in the process. According to what Bones told Scotty, he'll be alright but it'll take some time.

"That's not the worst of it. He didn't know what would happen, and he did it anyway. Uhura is mad at him," the engineer told her. Jamie laughed; Spock is on his own with that one.

Eventually, Chapel comm'ed for her to come to sickbay. Jamie walked into the room with Scotty and smiled.

"Aunt Jimmy!" Her nephews were sitting on a bio-bed together with Chekov.

"Hello, little dudes. You guys look better," she said as she gave both kids a big hug. They all smiled at her as Chapel gave her the rundown on their condition. "Where's Sam?" Chapel gestured towards Bones' office and she knew something was wrong.

"Go, we'll stay with the lads." Jamie thanked Scotty and Chekov, then headed to her husband's office. Bones was leaning against his deck when she entered the room, Sam was in tears against Gaila's chest. The Orion was holding onto him and whispering that it would be alright.

"No. What… what happened?" she asked. Bones pulled her out if his office and into one of the private rooms.

He took a breath, "Her nervous system couldn't take it. When we were down there, I told you that it was like something was stimulating the nervous system even when they were unconscious. That… thing overworked her heart. I tried, Jim. I did everything I could think of but I… lost her. I lost Aury." Jamie wrapped her arms around him. She wasn't sure if it was for his benefit or her own.

"I didn't get to her fast enough. This is on me, Len," she whispered against his shoulder.

"No, it's not," Uhura was standing in the doorway. "It's not your fault, Jamie. Not your fault either, Leonard. I don't know what those things are but I'm blaming them. Right now, your brother's world just got tossed on its head. His wife is gone. And those little boys… We can't fall apart and blame ourselves. They need us." Jamie took a breath, Uhura was right.


	59. Okay, That's Enough

"Okay, that's enough," Bones growled at her. Jamie didn't think so. There wasn't a whole lot you could do on a starship when you couldn't sleep. All her work was done and she didn't want to mess up anything in engineering, so she took to sparring with people; security officers, mostly. Cupcake didn't mind going a couple rounds on the mats with her and once Spock got his sight back he was often found sparring with her too.

Jamie glared at her husband, "We're not done yet."

He looked at her, "Yes, you are. Aside from Spock, Sulu and Hendorff, everybody you spar with ends up in medical." Sulu was her partner tonight and he looked between the two of them and bowed out.

"Sorry, as much as I love ya, doc scares me," the helmsman told her.

Jamie nodded, "Go ahead." He grabbed his towel and left the gym.

Bones was watching her, "You're gonna have to talk to me, Jim. You can try to push me away all you want but it's not gonna help. Talk to me."

She looked at him, "You win, I'll talk." Jamie shifted her weight from one foot to the other. The challenge in her voice was very clear. Bones sat his PADD on the bench, pulled his blue uniform shirt over his head and kicked off his boots.

"And if you win?"

Jamie shrugged, "I'll think of something."

Jamie attacked first but he sidestepped her. She shouldn't be surprised, she taught him how to fight years ago when she was the teaching assistant for Pike's hand-to-hand combat class. After that whole thing with Viktor, she wasn't taking any chances. He had the basics; she just helped him refine them. " _We're gonna run around the universe together, Bones. You gotta know how to fight a little more than you do._ " He rolled his eyes at the time but he did see the logic in knowing a bit of advanced hand-to-hand so he let her teach him.

They went a few rounds on the mats and Jamie lost. "You're exhausted and you aren't thinking clearly. You could've taken me down a few times if you thought about it. Come on, you need a shower and some sleep," Bones told her.

She nodded, "And your prize?"

He looked at her as they grabbed their stuff, "After you've slept, darlin'."

Aurelan wasn't the only loss from the colony. There were about a hundred people dead, people Jamie couldn't save. She knew she was letting it get to her, everybody did. The ship had taken missions in the two and a half weeks since they left Deneva but her heart just wasn't in it. Leaving her brother there was near impossible and she didn't talk to anyone for a whole day after that. To be honest, she thought Bones would give her crap about her lack of sleep and her self-imposed isolation earlier but it seemed like he was attempting to let her work it out. The whole crew felt the heartbreak that their captain was experiencing. Of all the people she saved, she couldn't save her brother's wife and it was killing her. She did everything on autopilot; even Scotty's new project didn't temp her.

They walked into their quarters and Jamie put her stuff away before heading in to take a shower. She closed her eyes and let the warm water wash over her, "You can't keep this up, but you know that."

Jamie didn't even look up, "I thought you were waiting until I got some sleep?" Bones shrugged as he stepped into the shower with her.

"I changed my mind. You can't run from me in here. You don't have to talk if you don't want to but I got plenty," he told her. She turned around and rested her head on his shoulder.

"You think I'm being an idiot, don't you?" she asked.

"For blaming yourself and pushing us all away, yes. We get it, Jim. Especially Gaila, she's still mourning for Gary. I know you got it in your head that you can save everyone but you can't. To make matters worse, you never stop to mourn for anyone. You never mourned your dad because people always bring him up. You never got the chance to mourn for Hoshi, your aunt, your uncle and the other kids because you were too busy keeping everybody alive. When Glorak died, we had to go back to class. After dad, you took care of me. Then there's Gary, Kevin, Lee and Brax. You were saving the world then we got married and you were handed a ship. You never stopped to mourn any of them and now Aury is on the list. You think that the safest thing to do is just shoulder it and keep going. But you need to stop bouncing around from one thing to the next and mourn. Cry, rage, talk... but don't shut me out." Jamie understood where he was coming from, he knew her better than she knew herself most of the time. She was running without going anywhere.

"It's easier to beat up on Cupcake then to accept that any of them are gone."

Bones chuckled, "True, but it doesn't help in the long run. Think of all the good, you saved a lot of lives, Jim. Even though there were losses, there is no way you can feel bad that you saved the boys or Earth or Tarsus... or Deneva Think about it." She did think about it, everyday; some days were better than others. Bones was right; she couldn't keep shutting down because there were too many people counting on her now.

"My heart hurts… all the time. It feels like… it feels like no matter what I do, I'm gonna lose something. I don't know how long I can keep fighting the good fight but I'm too stubborn to quit. I don't know if that makes sense." He helped her rinse the shampoo from her hair.

"It does make sense. You've given so much of yourself and there will come a day when you've got nothing left. That's exactly what I'm here for." He took her hand and kissed her wedding band, "You know, this thing isn't just about the awesome sex. It means you can talk to me about anything. Let me carry some of your burdens with you."

She smiled then kissed him. Jamie knew she was lucky to have him here with her. She pulled away and rested her head against his chest, "I'm scared that something might happen to you and there won't be anything I can do about it." It came out just above a whisper but she was sure that he heard her.

"You can't get rid of me that easily, darlin'." Bones hit the control to turn off the water and grabbed a towel. He dried her off with it before grabbing another towel for himself and led her out of the bathroom and into their bedroom.

They climbed into bed without bother to put anything on and Jamie snuggled as close to her husband as she possibly could. She closed her eyes and listened to his heartbeat as he run his hand along her back. They didn't say anything, they just laid there with tangled limbs, practically on top of each other. She felt him press a kiss to the top of her head as she drifted off into the first peaceful sleep she's had in weeks.


	60. Where is the Crew?

"Where is the crew?" Bones asked. Jamie was asking herself the same thing. They were on the USS Constellation after picking up a faint and garbled distress signal.

" _It's the Constellation's disaster beacon, but that's all I've been able to determine, Captain," Uhura notified her. Chekov turned his chair, "Ve hawe detected heawy subspace interference. Ve vill not be able to notify Starfleet Command_." Jamie ordered them to enter system L-370 to find that the seven planets in the system have been reduced to rubble.

They found the same thing in system L-374, debris where there were once healthy planets used to be. All of the systems in the sector have been destroyed except for the two inner planets in L-374. That's where they found their sister ship. The USS Constellation was under the command of Commodore Matt Decker and it was now a powerless wreck, drifting and apparently abandoned. Jamie knew of no natural cause for the planetary destruction and the condition of the Constellation led her to believe that this was the result of an attack.

Chekov's sensor scans showed that the Constellation was running with minimal life support, using up its reserve energy banks. " _All zhe power plants are dead, and zhe bridge is uninhabitable. Subspace interference is preventing further sensor readings, as well as any communications beyond the distress signal._ " He detected no other ships in the area, so Jamie ordered them to yellow alert. She took Scotty, Bones and a damage control team to the transporter room.

The away team beamed aboard the Constellation and started to look around. Scott took the engineers to the engine room while Jamie and Bones looked around. "Captain, the warp core is a total lost and the phaser banks are empty. This ship put up one hell of a fight, lass. The only thing running is the emergency backup power. I might be able to do something about the impulse engines," he told her over the comm.

There was no sign of anyone on the ship, no crew and no bodies; it made Jamie uneasy. She comm'ed over the Enterprise to find out if they beamed down to the surface of a nearby planet but Spock informed her that the planets could not possibly sustain Human life, one was too hot and the other was too toxic.

"Come on, Bones."

He looked at her, "Where we going?"

She slid past him, "Auxiliary bridge. Might be the only place on the ship with answers and I can access the ship's logs from there." Bones nodded and followed her as they make their way through the ship. When they entered the ship's secondary bridge and found Commodore Decker. He seemed to be the only one on the ship. "Commodore… sir. Matt!"

Jamie tried to wake him up while Bones checked him over and injected him with something. The Commodore was a friend of Pike's, so Jamie met him when she was a teenager. She liked the guy, he was one of the handful of senior officers who wasn't a complete asshole to her. While Bones was watching over him, Jamie accessed Decker's logs.

" _Captain's log, stardate 2258.87. Exceptionally heavy subspace interference still prevents our contacting Starfleet to inform them of the destroyed solar systems we have encountered. We are now entering system L-374. Science Officer Masada reports the fourth planet seems to be breaking up. We are going to investigate._ " That sounded like something she would do had she been here.

"Jamie?" Decker was coming around.

"Matt, where's your crew?" she asked.

He looked at her, "On the third planet."

"There is no third planet, sir," Bones told him.

Decker looked at the doctor, "Don't you think I know that? There was, but not anymore!" Decker explained to how his ship was attacked and disabled, unable to contact Starfleet due to the interference, he beamed his crew down to the third planet. As the captain, he was the last man aboard when the ship was attacked again. The transporters were disabled, and he was stranded.

"This attacker, sir, can you describe it for us?" Jamie asked.

He looked at her, "They say there's no devil, Jamie, but there is. Right out of hell, I saw it! That thing destroyed… it destroyed the third planet. My crew… it killed my crew. They begged for me to help them but there was nothing I could do. I couldn't help them. I couldn't…" he collapsed against her in tears and Jamie just held onto the older man. She ordered that the logs and sensor readings be sent over to the Enterprise so that Spock could take a look.

Scotty and his team comm'ed her from engineering, "Captain, Washburn says that the ship's antimatter stores were somehow deactivated." Jamie glanced at Bones.

"Scotty, could a general energy dampening field be responsible for that? Maybe the interference, too?" Jamie asked her chief engineer and waited as Scotty put it together. "

Aye, lass, it's possible, but I cannae think of anything that could generate the field," he told her.

"What did this thing look like?" she asked the commodore.

Decker began describing the being to her, "Miles long, with a maw that could swallow a dozen starships and it used some form of anti-proton beam to carve planets up into rubble. I don't know if it was a ship… or if it was a living organism." Jamie didn't like this one bit. Spock comm'ed over from the Enterprise.

"Captain, according to the data from the Constellation, this 'planet killer' is an automated weapon designed to smash planets and digest the debris for fuel. As long as there are planets to consume, the device is self-sustaining. We have calculated that the being came from outside the galaxy and its projected path will take it through the most densely populated section of our galaxy," her first officer reported.

Jamie really doesn't like this, "Bones, you ever hear of a doomsday machine?"

He shook his head, "No, Jim. I'm a doctor, not a mechanic." Spock speculated that it was a 'bluff' created by an unknown maker and intended as a deterrent.

"It's creators are presumably dead, Captain, we cannot confirm or deny that theory," Spock told her.

Bones looked at her, "Jim, I'm worried about Decker. I wanna take him over to our sickbay." Jamie nodded, the Commodore was slipping back and forth between his authoritarian captain's persona and that of a grief-stricken trauma victim.

"No, this is my ship, Kirk. This is my ship and I'm not leaving," Decker said. Jamie stood in front of him.

"Sir… Matt, there's nothing you can do here. We'll tow the Constellation home but we need to make sure that you're okay; Chris will kill me if I don't. Doctor McCoy is one of the best docs in the fleet. Let him take you over and check you out. I'll stay here and help get the ship prepped for tow."

He nodded, "Okay. Okay." Bones looked at her and called for a beam out from the Enterprise.

She went to join the engineers as soon as they were gone, a moment later, Spock comm'ed her from the her bridge, "Captain, the being has returned and is on a direct course for the Enterprise." Shit.

"Beam us back. Spock… Enterprise, come in."  She lost the connection to her ship. Jamie looked at Scotty, who tried to comm over.

"Nothing, lass," the Scot told her.

"Scotty, see what you can do about the impulse engines. Washburn, you're with me. We're gonna fix the viewscreen so that we can see what's going on." She and the engineer ran over the auxiliary bridge and got to work fixing the viewscreen. Jamie didn't like not knowing what was going on. Scotty informed her that they'd have to use the warp control circuits to control the impulse engines, which will make the ship difficult for one person to handle. "You worry about your miracles, Monty and I'll worry about mine."

Once Jamie and Washburn fixed the viewscreen, the first thing that popped up was the Enterprise, approaching dangerously close to the planet killer. The ship fired its phasers and landed direct hits on the planet killer but they weren't having an effect. Jamie attempted to comm them again but she still couldn't get through. She sent Washburn back to engineering and comm'ed her crazy friend, "Scotty, I need that impulse drive."

"You bet your ass, Captain," he said over comm. A few minutes later he was back, "We can move but that's all. Give it a go, lass." Scotty is a miracle worker because he managed to give her some impulse power, which provided them with basic maneuverability just as it pulled her ship into it's tractor beam. Jamie ran from one console to another in order to get the ship moving towards the Enterprise. Jamie's plan was simple, get it's attention away from her ship.

"I wish I had phasers," she informed Scotty.

"You got 'em, lass. I recharged one of the banks." Oh, how she loves that man.

"You know… if I wasn't married, Monty…"

He laughed, "You couldn't keep up with me, lass." Jamie fired at the planet killer, which caused it to release the Enterprise from its tractor beam and come about to pursue the Constellation.

"This is a bad idea," she said to herself.

Scotty came over the comm, "Jamie, we have comms back." She hailed the Enterprise and was surprised by Decker's voice. "Matt, what happened to Spock?" The Commodore informed her that he assumed command of the ship since Spock wouldn't attack the doomsday machine. "You mean to tell me that you're the lunatic who almost got my ship destroyed?" Jamie was not happy, what is with people taking over her ship? She knows that a lot of people didn't think she should be in command but she is and if she leaves someone in the chair, it's because they are the best person for the job at hand. Decker, of all people, should know better. He gave her some crap about regulations but she really was too pissed to listen to his convoluted explanation.

"Get my ship out of here. Spock, I need a status." Jamie doesn't know what took place on her bridge but Spock was the next voice she heard.

"Warp drive out. Deflector shields down. Transporter under repair. We are on emergency impulse power," her first officer informed her.

"How long to repair warp?" she asked. Spock responded that it would take a solar day and they would lose impulse in seven hours, tops. She informed them to take all necessary evasive action when she heard Sulu say that the machine was gaining on them. Decker tried to assert his command authority, again. "Spock, as the commanding officer of that ship, I order you to relieve Decker of command." Jamie was relieved when Spock confirmed that he had command and was plotting an evasive course to rendezvous with her. She punched in the same heading to meet her ship.

"Why are you launching a shuttle?" she asked her first officer a few minutes later.

"Whoever that is, Captain, they were not authorized," the Vulcan told her. Jamie took a breath, she knew it was Decker.

"Matt, come in. I know you can hear me."

After a moment, he responded, "Your first officer made a very valid point: there's no way to blast this thing from the outside. So, I figure, I can shove this shuttle down it's throat." She intended to talk him down but she stopped herself.

"That's it. Commodore, come about and head back to the ship. The shuttle doesn't have enough power for what you're planning to do but I think the Constellation does. Spock fix those transporters and beam out the engineering team on this ship, I have an idea." They've been attacking this thing from the outside but Jamie was sure that it wasn't protected from attacks that happened inside.

"It's too late for me, Jamie," Decker tried to convince her.

She shook her head, "No, it's not. You want to get this thing then listen to me. Your idea, it should work but that craft isn't big enough. It won't do any damage. We both know I'm not the dumb blonde with a lucky streak that everybody thinks I am. I know it hurts, losing people you care about, people you were responsible for but you still have a duty to them. You have a duty to make their sacrifice worth something. It's a fact that I recently had to learn. I'm tired of watching people die when they don't have to, Matt. You don't have to die for nothing; you can get back to my ship and help us destroy this thing." Decker didn't respond but he did turn the shuttle around.

Spock had everybody but Jamie and Scotty beamed back to the Enterprise while the two of them worked to overload the impulse engines. Spock confirmed her math; the ninety-seven-megaton fusion explosion that would result from the overload should be enough to destroy the doomsday machine. Since they can't breach the hull, Jamie was going to trigger the explosion while the Constellation was inside the planet killer. She and Scotty rigged a thirty-second delay trigger for the impulse engine overload, which they could can set off on the bridge.

"Captain, you are venturing to close to the device." Spock came over the comm.

"I know, I'm going to ram this ship down it's throat like Decker was planning to do with the shuttle." Both Spock and Scotty warned her that the transporter wasn't at full functionality.

"You could get trapped over here, lass," the engineer told her. Jamie was well aware of that and she let them know it before sending Scotty back to the Enterprise. He objected, "Oh, no way in hell, lass. If something happens to you, your husband will kill me. Then he'll bring me back so that everybody else can get a turn." Jamie chuckled, that was true.

"I'll be fine, Monty. Go." He reluctantly beamed back to the ship.

When the Constellation was less than five hundred miles away from the thing, Jamie activated the time delay trigger, "Alright, guys. Get me outta here." She was beamed over to the Enterprise and found herself in the transporter room with Scotty and Kyle. Jamie and Scotty ran to the bridge just in time to watch as the doomsday machine exploded. "Sulu, get us out of here."

"Aye, Captain." The helmsman punched in the safest and most power-conserving course out of the system.

"Scotty, get a status on everything and then get some rest." Bones was standing on the bridge next to Decker.

"Jim…" Bones started.

She smiled, "I know, I know… Spock, you have the con."


	61. I Hate Dealing with Dignitaries

"I hate dealing with dignitaries," Bones groaned. Jamie nodded, she agreed with him but this was the job. After getting Decker sorted and getting the ship fixed, they were assigned to transport a group of diplomats to Babel for an interspecies conference, Spock's dad was among them. The delegates will be attending the conference to decide the admission of the planet Coridan into the Federation, which is rich in dilithium but poorly defended. Jamie didn't mind the extra people, mostly because, unlike her husband, she could understand most of them without translation.

Aside from the Vulcans on the ship, there were also Tellarites, Andorians, Denobulans and a bunch of other races aboard. She knew that Bones also hated wearing his dress grey uniform, which she made him wear for the reception; he wasn't the only one, Uhura didn't want to wear hers either. He grumbled as they made their way to the large rec room that was holding this party, " _Dammit Jim_ , _I feel like my neck's in a sling."_ _She smiled, "I quite like you in uniform, Doctor McCoy, it's very sexy." He rolled his eyes but smiled, "You're evil, woman." She shrugged, "But you love me._ "

Jamie was a little surprised to find that Sarek openly spoke with her. She could tell he missed his wife; Lady Amanda always encouraged him to do what was best for himself and his people and Jamie knew that the women wouldn't be happy if Sarek –or Spock- just gave up. While she was talking with him the Tellarite ambassador, Gav, came over.

"Ambassador Sarek of Vulcan, what are your thoughts on Coridan's admission to the Federation?"

Sarek looked at the man and simply replied, "It will be known at the conference." The young captain smiled at that, Gav wasn't amused and tried to start an argument with Sarek. Glorak always used to tell her that Tellarites don't need a reason to argue, they do it for sport.

"Bridge to Captain Kirk," Sulu was on the bridge.

"Go ahead, Sulu." The helmsman told her that there was something she needed to see on the bridge so she excused herself and headed up.

"Captain on the bridge," Chekov called when she walked in.

"What's up guys?" she asked.

Sulu stood from the chair, "We're being followed by an unidentified ship, ma'am."

Jamie sat in the chair as Gaila looked at her from the science station, "It's not of any known configuration and we're the only ship that Starfleet has authorized to be out here."

Hawkins spoke from comms, "Captain, it appears that there is someone on this ship communicating with them over hidden channels. I'll try to figure out who it is and what their sending." Just one, she just wanted one mission where it all went how it was supposed to.

Jamie nodded, "Carry on, Hawkins. Sulu, let me know if this ship does something and keep an eye on it." He told her that he would so she headed back to the politicians. She walked into the room just in time to see Sarek and Gav in a fight.

"Hey, break it up. There will be order on my ship, gentleman." Jamie jumped between the two men and Hendorff helped her pull them apart. Gav glared at Sarek.

"There will be payment for your slander, Sarek," the Tellarite growled.

The Vulcan looked at him, "Threats are illogical. And payment is usually expensive." Hendorff followed Gav as he left the room and Jamie looked at Sarek.

"What the hell was that about, Ambassador?"

He looked at her, "When I informed him that I would vote for Coridan's admission to the Federation, he became upset. When he could not provoke me, he insulted Spock and Amanda and stared a physical altercation." Jamie nodded, she was very glad that she let Hendorff take the Tellarite because she might've hit him too.

The reception finally ended and Jamie walked into her quarters as Bones was changing out of his dress uniform, "I thought you were gonna let me take that off of you?"

He chuckled, "As much as I would love that, and I do love it, we have work to do, darlin'." Jamie pouted as he kissed her behind the ear, "If you want, I'll put it on later just for you."

Jamie chuckled, "I'll think about it." She was going to say something else when the comm in the room buzzed.

"Security to Kirk." The captain kissed her husband and hit the control for the comm.

"Kirk here."

"Ma'am, this is Josephs, I just found the Tellarite ambassador on Deck eleven, section Alpha-three, he's dead." The security officer told her. Jamie looked at Bones.

"Stand by, Lieutenant. Doctor McCoy and I are on the way." He acknowledged her command and she quickly switched uniforms.

* * *

"Well, his neck is broken, Jim." She looked at Bones and motioned for him to continue, "Whoever did this knew exactly where to apply pressure. The break is precise, surgical even."

Jamie nodded, "Who on the ship has the knowledge and the strength to do something like that?"

Spock looked at her, "Vulcans. It's known as tal-shaya. A merciful form of execution, Captain."

Jamie thought about it, "I broke up a fight between Gav and your father. As much as I hate to say it, Spock, Sarek would be the prime suspect." Her first officer didn't even seem bothered by that fact.

"That is a logical assumption, Jamie. However, Vulcans do not approve of violence. It would be illogical to kill someone without reason," Spock told her.  He had a point.

Hendorff and Zahra offered to help the medical team get Gav to sickbay while Jamie, Bones and Spock went to see the ambassador. They found him on the observation deck, alone.

"Ambassador," Jamie said. He looked up the sound of her voice.

"Captain," the Vulcan looked at her. He looked... tired. Jamie glanced at Spock but Bones spoke up first.

"The Tellarite ambassador, Gav, was found dead. His neck snapped in what Spock describes as tal-shaya. Have you been in here for the past hour?" Sarek moved to say something but collapsed into the chair. Bones scanned him, "Something's wrong with his heart, Jim." She nodded and looked at Spock as he helped Bones take his father to medical.

* * *

Jamie went back to the bridge to find out what they were learning about the communications between the other ship and someone on the Enterprise. Uhura, Hawkins and Gaila were running scans and trying to figure out the language and coding of the messages.

She walked into medical to learn that Bones and M'Banga were considering a surgery to fix the defect in Sarek's heart. She heard Chapel tell the men that there wasn't enough Vulcan blood on the ship and Spock interjected, "My father and I are the same blood type, I will donate."

"But you're half human, sir. Your blood isn't pure Vulcan," the nurse added. Chapel liked Spock, everyone knew it but nobody said it and Uhura didn't let it get to her. Jamie was almost glad she wasn't down here at the moment because she would be agreeing with Chapel. The nurse looked at her, "Captain…"

Jamie shook her head, "If he wants to help his father, I won't object." They all looked at her and she looked at Spock, "As long as you're sure, I'll back you up."

He nodded, "Thank you, Captain. I am sure." Bones looked like he wanted to argue but also knew better, they weren't adding Spock to the 'Dead Dads' club, not if they could help it. Bones gestured towards his office.

"This could kill him, Jim."

Jamie nodded, "Watching his father die could kill him too, you and I know that better than anyone." She watched as he considered her words.

He nodded, "Okay. I"ll do the damn surgery. You go get some rest."

Jamie was almost at her quarters when she realized that she was being trailed. She sidestepped just as the Andorian swung at her. The captain recognized him as Thelev, he was with the Andorian delegation. She didn't know why he was after her but she fought. Jamie would've called for help but there was no one around. She landed some good hits but the knife in her side was draining the energy out of her system. She landed a knee to his face and he went down. She hit the intercom panel, "Kirk to Security."

Hendorff answered her quickly, "Yes, Captain."

"I was attacked by Thelev near my quarters…" She looked at the blood running down her side, "… need Bones…" Jamie doesn't know what happened after that, everything went black.


	62. I Swear She's Tryin' to Give Me Gray Hair

"I swear she's tryin' to give me gray hair," Bones muttered from somewhere above her. Jamie would've laughed but she didn't have it in her. She heard Spock speak to him.

"I do not believe that Jamie sought out the altercation. Blaming her is… illogical," he told Bones. She blinked her eyes open to find her husband moving around the room, glaring at her first officer as he went.

"Don't you start with 'illogical' this and that, she got stabbed," the doctor practically growled.

Spock was standing near the door, "Doctor, she is awake."

Bones looked at her, "I should kick your ass, darlin'." Jamie smiled and looked at him.

"You know that only works when I'm tired or hurt. You would fight an injured woman?"  she asked. Jamie tried to sit up, oh, that hurts.

"That's what you get. Now, just stay there. You…" Bones started. 

"Were attacked, on my ship, near our quarters. It's the one place I'm supposed to be safe. This isn't my fault and you know it. How long was I out and what happened?"

He took a breath, "I know; you just scared the shit out of me. You've been out for three hours. Thelev was helped to the brig by Hendorff, Henderson and Zahra… I had to send Chapel down there to see to his wounds, your officers weren't exactly gentle. Lieutenant Kai carried you to medical himself, he said there was too much blood to wait for me. And if you start rattling off stuff in Russian, it's because the wiz-kid donated blood for you. A bunch of people did but Chekov was here first and he's the same blood-type as you." Jamie wanted to cry. Her crew had her back. It was something she always felt but on days like today she needed to know, and now she did.

"Do we know why?" she asked the duo in blue.

Spock stepping closer, "We do not. Lieutenants Mitchell and Hendorff are conducting the… investigation. I am not sure which of the two he should fear more."

She smiled, "Gaila. Trust me. Hendorff is intimidating but Gaila isn't, she strikes when people don't expect it. They'll figure it out. How's Sarek?"

"His health is rapidly declining. In light of your injury, I cannot allow myself to become incapacitated as well."

Jamie looked at her friend, "Spock, go help your father…"

Bones cut her off, "You're kidding, right? You got stabbed, your lung was punctured, Jim. We're being followed and you want to just ignore all that?"

She looked at him, "The ship will be fine. Pike and I picked damned good officers. Scotty is in command and I'm hurt, not dead. If we don't do this now, Sarek will die and I can't live with that. If I have to crawl to the bridge, you will help him, Bones. Don't make me have to order you, I hate issuing you orders." Whatever he was going to say died at the look she sent his way.

"Dammit! We're gonna talk about this later, Jim."

She shrugged, "I know. Now, can I have some real clothes?"

Bones rolled his eyes, "I can't talk you out of this, right?"

Jamie smiled, "Nope."

* * *

 

Walking onto the bridge, Jamie watched her crew hard at work.

"Are you okay, Keptin?" Chekov asked her.

She smiled, "I'm fine, I hear I have you to thank for that." The kid smiled at her and turned back to his console to give her an update just as Sulu registered the vessel getting closer.

Uhura turned her chair, "Captain, I'm getting a transmission; it's coming from the brig."

Jamie nodded, "Notify security to search the prisoner. Gaila and Hendorff should still be down there." Uhura got right to work as Jamie turned her attention to the enemy ship. "Shields up, Red alert." No sooner did the words come out of her mouth did the ship start firing on them. "Mister Sulu, return fire." He shook his head.

"I am, but that ship is too fast, Captain," he told her.

Gaila comm'ed from the brig, "Captain, we had to stun the prisoner. One of his antennae held a transmitter." Now we're getting somewhere.

"Bring him to the bridge, Mitchell," she ordered Gaila.

Her friend replied, "Yes, ma'am."

"I swear we all need a vacation." Jamie said mostly to herself. Some of the crew chuckled and nodded.

"Captain, the delegates want to know what's going on," Uhura informed her.

"Tell them to take a wild guess," she quipped. Uhura would give them a real answer but Jamie didn't have the patience to do it herself. Chekov was giving Jamie information on the other ship.

"Zhey are quick but zhey only hawe standard phasers," the young officer told her just as Gaila, Hendorff and Thelev entered the bridge.

"I'm only going to ask this once: Who are you and what do you want?" The Andorian, who she isn't so convinced is actually Andorian, looked at her and smiled.

"Find your own answers, Kirk," her attacker said to her.

"You aren't Andorian, you're a spy. Surgically altered to fit into the ambassadors staff. You killed Gav, you attacked me and at this point, I don't even care about why." Jamie comm'ed Scotty, "After the next hit, cut starboard power." Everyone looked at her but nobody asked what she was doing the crew of this ship knew better and Scotty knew how she thought because he waited until after another hit to cut port-side power too; the ship just drifted, appearing to be dead. "Sulu, Chekov, ready weapons on my mark."

Thelev looked at her, "You're baiting them? You're crazy!" Jamie shrugged as best as she could.

"I'm not crazy. I'm pissed off, there's a difference. Gentlemen… now." Both officers fired their weapons and disabled the ship.

"Should we hail them, Captain?" Uhura asked but Jamie and Gaila looked at each other.

"Nope." As soon as she said it, the ship self-destructed. "Only people who had anything to gain from all the chaos are the Orions, right Gaila?"

"That's right, Captain. Orion raiders have been causing havoc on Coridan for decades. If the Federation protects the planet, they lose out. It's also why he tried to kill you, to raise suspicion of the other races and cause interplanetary conflict," her green friend declared.

Jamie smiled, "Take him back to the brig. Uhura, notify Starfleet command that we have a prisoner. Mister Sulu, you have the ship."

He nodded, "Yes, ma'am." She got up and went straight to sickbay.

"How are they, Bones?" she asked. He started grumbling about the ship shaking around and some other stuff she didn't catch, "Bones! I'm tired, I'm sore and the Orions tried to kill us. Please just tell me if my friend is okay." He nodded and gestured towards the room she was in earlier, Spock and Sarek were both sitting up in bed. "You look better, Ambassador."

He nodded, "You look haggard, Captain."

She smiled, "Long day. I've had worse." She talked with them for a while before she was kicked out by her husband.

"You can either go get in our bed, or I can confine you to one in here. Pick one. Either way, you're off duty for the next two days. Argue with me and I'll make it ten," Bones told her. Jamie agreed to go to their quarters, "Josephs, walk with her." The security officer nodded at Bones and even offered her an arm. Safely back in her quarters, the second her head hit the pillow, she was out.


	63. What is Helios Station?

"What is Helios Station?" Bones asked her. It was three weeks after the conference when Spock got a comm from an old friend.

"Helios is a science station run by the Vulcans and the Captain grew up with Spock. He said T'Mar was one of the few Vulcans that never gave him a problem about being a hybrid. She needs help with something and Starfleet gave us the okay to help her." They walked into the transporter room to find her first officer was already there. "Hey Spock."

He nodded his greeting, "Captain."

"Ma'am, sirs, they're ready," Lieutenant Kyle notified her.

Jamie nodded, "Beam her over, Kyle." The officer punched some commands into the console and a beautiful Vulcan materialized in front of them. "Captain T'Mar, welcome to the Enterprise. I'm Captain Kirk, this is my Chief Medical Officer, Doctor McCoy and I believe you know my Executive Officer, Commander Spock."

T'Mar nodded as she stepped off the pad, "Thank you, Captain Kirk. This matter is of the utmost importance. It is agreeable to see you, Spock."

"And you, T'Mar," Spock told her. 

The group left the transporter room and joined the rest of the senior staff –minus Sulu- in the ready room.

"As you are aware, we have discovered a planet on which to rebuild our race. A project of this magnitude would take generations to complete; Helios is part of the colonization efforts for New Vulcan. The station was harnessing the energy from the binary stars to power the Helios Device on New Vulcan, it was a critical component of the terra-forming process. This morning, the station's power was shut off. I had to issue a full evacuation that completed with me," the Vulcan captain told them.

Jamie looked at her, "And without power, the binary stars will destroy the station. Anyone with even a little astrophysics knowledge would know that. Who would leave you and your crew in such a dangerous situation?"

"Surok," was all the Vulcan said.

Jamie looked at her first officer, "Wanna fill me in?"

Spock looked at her, "Surok is T'Mar's father, he is also a mentor to myself and the Vulcan people. I do not understand why he would turn the power off." Jamie looked between the two Vulcans as T'Mar looked at Spock.

"Helios may have caused an anomaly," the Vulcan woman told him. "That is why I requested your assistance." So, the plot thickens.

"That sounds fun. I'm kidding, Bones," Jamie  said before he could grumble.

Chekov sat up straighter, "It's unusual, but I beliewe it is some kind of rip in space."

Jamie looked at the kid, "Like a wormhole?"

"Something like zhat but not quite. It appears to be a shortcut through space," the young genius told them.

"Where does it lead, Mister Chekov?" Spock asked him.

"There is no vay to know for sure, sir," the navigator told  him.

T'Mar looked at Jamie, "I believe that rip is why my father shut everything down." That's what Jamie was thinking too.

"We need to talk to him. Uhura…" the young captain didn't even have to give the order before the woman in question got to her feet.

"On it, Captain," the communications officer left the room.

"It's of no use, Captain. We lost communications with the base when everything was shut off," T'Mar said. Jamie nodded at the other captain, a minute later Uhura responded that she couldn't get through either.

"According to our scans, the rip is contracting and will be gone in eighteen hours," Chekov told the room.

Bones looked at them, "That's a bad thing, how?" It wasn't, not really. Jamie still had a bad feeling, she hit the comm to the bridge.

"I'm not sure, yet. Sulu, take us into New Vulcan. Uhura, have Kai and Zahra meet us in transporter room one. Scotty, you have the ship. Gaila, you're with us." Bones decided that he was going on the mission too, just in case. They walked into the transporter with Scotty who was gonna do the honors of beaming them down.

"What's with the look, Scotty?" she asked.

He opened a case and handed her a phaser, "Congratulations, lass, your phaser has been upgraded, your tricorders too." He handed one each to her, Bones, Spock and Gaila.

Jamie gave him a kiss on the cheek, "Oh, I love you, Monty."

"You're trying to make me look bad, aren't you?" Bones asked the engineer.

"Not my fault that I know my way to your lasses heart. Seriously, I'm working on plasma rifles and stasis grenades. She might just leave you for me." A few people in the room chuckled, including Jamie.

"I wouldn't… Maybe," she teased. Bones rolled his eyes as the team and T'Mar stepped onto the pad. "Alright, Scotty. Energize."

* * *

They materialized on the surface near Helios Base and realized that something was very wrong. "It is always this quiet, T'Mar?"

The Vulcan looked at her, "No, Captain. It is not." That was not good news. They found the entrance to Helios, only to find that they were locked out. "The highest security protocols have been activated. We will need to hack our way in," T'Mar informed them. Jamie didn't even have to issue the order, her team was on it.

"I'm gonna need someone on that console," Gaila informed her but Spock was already there. The pair hacked the doors open and they all made their way inside.

"I don't like this," Jamie said to no one in particular, everything was shut off. "This was on purpose. T'Mar, can you operate any of these systems?" she asked the other captain.

T'Mar moved further into the control room, "I can, Captain. Are you implying that I stay behind? But my father..."

Spock answered for Jamie, "T'Mar, we may need your technical assistance should things become… unpredictable. When we find Surok, we will notify you."

Jamie looked at Gaila, "Mitchell, can you help her out?"

The Orion nodded, "I can, Captain. I'll keep the comms open."

Jamie looked at her team, "Alright, Zahra, fellas, let's go." They left the room and made their way deeper into the base. They came upon a corridor with a bunch of dead Vulcans in it.

"Bones?" she asked.

He knelt by one and did a scan, "He's dead, Jim. This is a high powered phaser wound." They got to the end of the room and the lift doors opened to reveal a Vulcan who was infected with… something.

"Stun, guys!" Jamie ordered. Everybody shot with their stun setting and he went down. Spock and Bones rushed over to him while Jamie, Zahra and Kai kept watch.

Bones looked up at her, "He's been poisoned. There are a bunch of toxins in his adrenal gland and his blood stream, Jim. The question is: why?" That's what she wanted to know. Jamie had the ship beam up the injured and they kept moving. They took down more poisoned Vulcans on their way.

Eventually, they found a small group of non-infected security officers. The Vulcans quickly ushered them into the room.

"Spock," came the voice of an older Vulcan. They looked up at the man who called her first officer. Jamie could swear Spock sighed in relief.

"Surok, I am relieved to see you unharmed. This is my commanding officer, Captain Kirk. Captain, this is Surok," Spock introduced them to each other.

She looked at him, "Pleasure, sir."

Surok looked at her, then Spock, "And T'Mar."

They heard her voice over the comm, "I am here, father." It didn't show on his face but he was relieved.

"I am pleased to hear your voice," he told his daughter. They didn't have time for this.

"As much as I love reunions, can you tell us what's going on around here?" Jamie asked.

Surok nodded, "We have been attacked. The creatures emerged from the Rip. All we've been able to decipher is that they call themselves The Gorn."


	64. That is One Ugly S.O.B.

After Surok informed them that The Gorn were attempting to take the Helios Device so they they could open rips anywhere they wanted; Jamie decided that going after them was the best course of action. Jamie and company were going deeper into the lab to get the device before the Gorn got the chance to take it. She gave Bones the option to stay with Surok but he readied his phaser and looked at her; he was going where she went. Since the lab was so deep, T'Mar and Gaila would lose contact with them at some point but they would help as much as possible.

The captain, the doctor, the scientist and the two security officers made their way further into Helios Base. They found more infected Vulcans as they made their way through the compound. _"Captain, I believe you should hear this,"_ Spock was accessing the computer when he came across a recording of Surok. _'I no longer believe Commodore Daniels has the best interests of the Vulcan people at heart. His assistance in the construction of the Helios Device was gratefully received but with it has come an expectation of control over the device's operations that is most troubling. I expressed my doubts to T'Mar but she remains adamant that she will not allow Daniels to compromise our plans. I no longer trust Daniels but my trust in my daughter must not waiver.'_ They all knew who Daniels was.

The commanding officer of the Frontier Seventeen Starbase, Daniels was a jackass who hated Jamie with a passion and wasn't shy about insulting her to her face. He was a power hungry asshole who stepped on people to get ahead. She really had no clue how he's lasted in Starfleet so long. Jamie said as much once under her breath, Pike nudged her and said, ' _Officers like him is the reason I recruited officers like you_.' She made a joke that there weren't any officers like her and Pike nodded, ' _Exactly my point_.'

They continued to the Helios Device only to find their way blocked by mangled metal and a small fire, "Captain, there's no way through that." Jamie nodded at Zahra. They all looked around and Kai found an access hatch. Jamie unlocked it and jumped down the rabbit hole. They made their way through the maintenance shaft, Jamie pushed open the hatch on the other side and was pulled out by her throat.

"JIM!" Bones called.

This thing was huge, green, ugly, scaly and smelly. All Jamie could use to describe it as it screamed in her face was mean, giant lizard. It tossed her to the side like she was nothing. Jamie rolled and tried to get on her feet but it grabbed her again and held her up by her throat, ignoring the others until Bones –yes, her Bones- started shooting at it. Kai and Zahra used the rifles that Surok gave them while Bones and Spock used their phasers. When the Gorn dropped her, she slid to cover to catch her breath then drew her weapon and unloaded on the huge creature. It took all five of them to bring it down.

"That is one ugly S.O.B." Bones growled as he slid over to her. "You alright, Jim?"

She nodded, "I'm sick of being choked but other than that, I'm fine. I'm gonna be black and blue later."

He chuckled as he pulled her to her feet, "How is that different from any other day?" She would laugh, except she was sore.

Spock did a scan of the downed Gorn, "This is the toxin we found in the fallen Vulcans, but it does not appear to be infected. The Gorn must be the host."

Jamie shrugged, "Ya think?" Spock has known her long enough to understand her sarcasm, so he didn't respond.

They continued though the compound, a bit more alert then before. Spock found another audio log; this one belonged to T'Mar. ' _I will always be grateful for the assistance Commodore Daniels has shown the Vulcan people, but his priorities have recently become troubling. He remains steadfast in his support of the Helios Device, however, he has shown more interest in the device's side effects rather than it's primary function_.' That doesn't sound good and Daniels is the last person in the universe that should have had access to this project.

They stepped into the scanner outside the main lab and entered the room. "Captain, he has the Helios Device."

"Thank you, Spock, for stating the obvious"

A large Gorn looked over at them, pointed and told his soldiers… something. They promptly started shooting at Jamie and company. The captain grabbed Bones and Zahra and pulled them behind a console while Spock and Kai each moved behind a pillar. The two women of the group looked at each other, waited for a break in enemy fire and then popped up and started shooting. This is where all that hanging out with security came in handy, Jamie knew how most of them thought and she could fight beside them without too many surprises. Bones, Spock and Kai held their fire until the girls stopped to recharge. As soon as Jamie and Zahra went back into cover, the guys started shooting. Jamie looked at Bones; he was scary good. Maybe he spent a little too much time on away missions with her if he was fighting like a soldier.

"He's getting away with the device, Captain," Kai warned her; he had a better vantage point then she did. She glanced at her husband.

"Jim, don't even think about it," he told her.

"Too late," she said as she hopped over the console to take out the last Gorn using hand-to-hand. Jamie knocked the creature out and looked around the room. Spock tried to raise Surok on the comm but he couldn't get through. Jamie didn't like this. She comm'ed Gaila, "Can you hear me, Mitchell?"

The Orion answered her, "We copy you, Captain." The relief was probably written all over her face.

"Gaila, they have the device. Can you tell where they're going?" she asked.

Gaila didn't say anything for a second, "They appear to be taking the device to the surface."

Bones looked at her, "We'll never catch up to 'em."

T'Mar voice came over the comm, "If Lieutenant Mitchell and I can restore the power to the turbolift, you should be able to intercept them." Jamie told them to go for it as she and her team made it to the turbolift down the other corridor.

"Scotty, Chekov… Enterprise, do you copy?" Jamie knew it was a long shot but she had to try. T'Mar informed her that with the device out of it's containment field, there was too much interference to communicate with her ship. The lift opened and they made their way back to where they left Surok; of course, the Gorn didn't make it easy.

"Zahra!" Jamie called. The security officer went down with a shot to her shoulder.

"I'm alright, Captain. Just a scratch," the platinum blonde grunted.

Bones looked at both women, "Great! Another one who brushes off her injuries." Jamie chuckled as he scanned Zahra, the security officer looked up at him.

"Well, we're still not out of the woods, doc. Would you prefer that I flail my arms and cry? Sorry, not my style. You're a good doctor, I'll be fine." Zahra told Bones.

"Sounds like something I would say," Jamie muttered under her breath. Of course, that's when T'Mar alerted them over the comm that the Gorn had Surok.

"We'll get him back," Jamie told Spock's friend. The Vulcan woman told her that the device was still top priority; Bones rolled his eyes. Anybody who's known Jamie for more than a few minutes knows that she values life too much to let that go.

They made outside just in time to see some Gorn ships getting ready to fly off. Jamie glanced at Bones and Zahra, "You two, stay here."

She didn't give them a chance to argue as she, Spock and Kai ran off and jumped onto one of the ships platforms. Spock and Kai cleared the jump without a problem but Jamie was shorter than both men and she only caught the edge. Kai provided cover while Spock pulled her up. They all started shooting and took out all the Gorn that flooded the aft of the ship.

"That's not good," Kai said. Jamie followed his line of sight. The other ship had turned it's weapons on them and blasted it's own ship out of the sky with the three Starfleet officers on it.

Jamie nodded, "Oh fuck!"


	65. Remind Me to Kill Those Things

The ship crashed into the building, effectively sending them back inside... if you call a gaping hole in the building inside. Bones and Zahra got to her pretty fast considering they had to climb part of the way down to where she was and Zahra was only operating with one arm.

"Remind me to kill those things," her husband growled. Bones was not happy, "Jim, you alright, darlin?"

Jamie groaned, "I'm fine, it's just my leg. Help me up." Bones injected her with a mild painkiller and pulled her to her feet. It was no use; her leg was done.

"Take this," Bones handed her his phaser and then picked her up, mindful of her leg. Jamie took a deep breath as she took in her husband. There was something insanely hot about all this. The second they get ten minutes to themselves, she was gonna jump his bones, pun intended. He glanced at her face and smiled, "What's with the smirk, darlin'?"

"Not in front of the kids, dear," she said with a wink. The Gorn that got tossed out of the ship with them were spilling out everywhere, Jamie started shooting over her husband's shoulder. Zahra was shooting with her good arm. Jamie called for her other officers over the comm, "Spock, Kai?"

"I am here, Captain," Spock informed her as he jumped off a ledge.

Kai spoke up as he pushed some debris off himself, "Still kicking, ma'am."

They needed to rendezvous with Gaila and T'Mar and get the hell out of here. The Gorn had the device and Surok; there was nothing else they could do from the ground. Spock notified T'Mar that they needed an exit and she told them where to go. Gaila and T'Mar intersected with them as they made their way out of the compound.

"The Gorn have overrun this facility. This way, Captain," T'Mar told them before she led the team outside. Jamie looked up just as the Gorn ships were prepping to go. She knew it was bad that the interference was clearing; it meant the Helios Device was getting away.

"Scotty, beam us out of here," she ordered into her communicator.

"You bet your ass, Captain," the engineer had them beamed up in a flash.

"We need to get to the bridge. I know what you're gonna say, Bones but we're short on time," she told her husband. He rolled his eyes and whispered that she was lucky he loved her. Bones carried her to the turbolift and onto the bridge, "Full power, Sulu. We can't lose that ship. Uhura, open all hailing frequencies." The two lieutenants followed their orders while Bones sat Jamie in her chair and fixed what damage to her leg he could while on the bridge.

"No response, Captain," Uhura informed her.

Jamie shrugged, "It's okay, I didn't feel like talking to them anyway. Chekov, Sulu, prepare to engage hostiles."

"Aye, Keptin," the wiz kid responded.

Sulu nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

Spock spoke up from the science console, "Captain, sensors indicate a Vulcan life sign on the larger enemy ship."

Jamie nodded, "Surok."

Chekov warned her from his station, "Enemy fighters are vithin range, Keptin. Zhey're on intercept course vith us."

"Phaser banks are at maximum charge, Captain," Scotty informed her from the engineering station.

Jamie took a breath, "Sulu, Chekov, get ready to dance. Bones, you might wanna hold onto something."

Uhura looked at her, "Fighters approaching in three… two… one…"

"Fire at will, gentlemen," Jamie ordered. Both officers got to work as the fighters tried to take them out. It would've actually been cool to watch if it wasn't life or death. Sulu and Chekov were always good friends but after Nero, they were even closer, like brothers. It showed in how they worked together and it reminded her of when she worked with Trip; it was as if they were two halves of the same brain. They destroyed the smaller ships and the larger ones started pulling some crazy moves.

"What the hell are they doing?" she asked.

Spock answered her as the whole ship shuttered, "They appear to be engaging in some form of suicide mission."

Jamie didn't like the sound of that, "Scotty, damage report."

The engineer responded, "Assessing now, Captain. At quick glance, she appears to be holding together. I don't know how much more she can take."

"Sulu, Chekov, make sure none of them get through the shields," she instructed the two gold shirts.

Uhura turned in her chair, "Captain, the enemy ships have resumed course towards the Rip."

Spock stood next to her, "With the attack fighters destroyed, we could easily overtake the remaining vessels." He was speaking her language.

"Hold your fire. Sulu, go to full impulse and get us within transporter range. Uhura hail the lead ship and tell them that they're about to be boarded." Uhura acknowledged but the ships around them started going up, "I said HOLD your fire." Jamie looked at Sulu and Chekov.

Sulu shook his head, "That wasn't us, Captain. If I didn't know any better, I'd say they were firing on their own ships." She nodded and thought about the implications.

"They're creating a debris field… with their own ships and people," Jamie said. She glanced at Spock; he nodded his agreement. That's just great; their new foe was crazy and placed no value on their own lives. It's hard to fight someone like that, someone with nothing to lose. As soon as they were within torpedo range, Jamie ordered Sulu to aim at the engines and disable the ship. "Uhura, get me Starfleet Command. Sulu, set pursuit course," she issued her orders. She knew they'd have to do something before the Gorn figured out how to use the Helios Device.

"We're going over there?" Bones asked her. Jamie nodded at her husband's question. "Jim, you can barely walk on your own and sickbay is full of infected Vulcans. We need to get these people to the nearest Starbase, _yesterday_."

Uhura looked at her, "Captain, the Rip is interfering with communications. I can't raise Command."

Bones shook his head, "So… you plan to go through a compressing rip in the fabric of space to chase an alien race we know nothing about, except that they have a doomsday device and we can't even call for backup. Jim, that's stupid. You're a lot of things but stupid is not one of them."

"The doctor may be correct. If we fail in our pursuit, Starfleet would know nothing of our fate and they would be ill equipped to defend the Federation from the Gorn threat," Spock added.

"ETA to the Rip is two minutes, Captain," Sulu notified her. Jamie hated it when Bones and Spock teamed up on her; it usually meant she should just listen to them, usually, not always.

"We don't know what's on the other side, Jim. We gotta get these people off this ship if we're gonna go fight a war," Bones said to her.

T'Mar stepped forward, "Commodore Daniels operates a starbase, nearby." Jamie nodded, she knew that, even though she didn't want to.

"Dammit. Sulu break off pursuit and get us to Frontier Seventeen. As much as I hate Daniels, it's our only logical option."


	66. Quarantine Procedures

"Quarantine procedures. We have no idea what we're dealing with here. You should stay clear, Jim, just in case," Bones told her.

She nodded, "Got it. See what you can find out and we'll go talk to Daniels." Jamie, Bones, Spock, T'Mar, Hendorff and Bates were on Frontier Seventeen. She ordered the Enterprise to head back to New Vulcan to pick up more survivors. Jamie left Bones in the makeshift medical area and went to talk to the Commodore. They made their way to the command deck; Hendorff and Bates stood near the entrance while Jamie, Spock and T'Mar stepped up behind Daniels.

"I just want to know one thing: Did anything come through?" The Commodore turned in his chair; of course he knew something like this could happen.

"Sir?" she asked. Jamie had a bad feeling about this.

"I assume you're here because the machine caused a Rip. Did anything come through?" Daniels asked.

"We were attacked. They took my father," T'Mar informed him.

Daniels smirked, "Then it works." What?

"With all due respect, sir, what the _hell_ is going on here?" Jamie asked. She was holding her tongue but it wasn't easy.

"Unlike you, Miss Kirk, I did not get my command because my _daddy_ died in some heroic blaze of glory. Some of us have to earn our way in life." She really was holding her tongue. 'Don't let him bait you,' ran through her head.

"People died back there!" She was livid. This man is supposed to be a leader, a Starfleet officer.

"I'm sure their sacrifice will be noted," he said dismissively. Jamie doesn't know what, but she was about to do something.

" _Remain calm, sister,"_ Spock said to her in Vulcan before he turned his attention to Daniels. "Commodore, you do realize that the Helios Device has fallen into hostile hands. If the Gorn learn to harness it's power, they will be unstoppable."

"Isn't that where you come in? You two and your gaggle of friends are supposed to be the big heroes. The rising stars of the fleet, or so I read somewhere. I suggest you get that device back before there are more casualties," the man sneered at Spock.

"Which is it, sir?" Jamie looked at him.

"What?" Daniels asked, confused.

She took a breath, "Which is it? Did I get my command because of my father? Or am I the big hero that has to clean up the mess you made? You can't have it both ways… Commodore."

He glared at her, "You would do well to remember that I outrank you, Kirk."

She smirked, "Yes, sir. I am well aware. It doesn't make my question any less valid. You knew that this could happen and you did it anyway. You put lives and the Federation at risk and now you want me and my crew to fix it."

"What have I done?" T'Mar asked.

Daniels smiled, "You created a machine that will shape the future of Starfleet. Even if none of you see it now, you will."

Spock looked at his friend, "T'Mar, you were aware of this?"

She stepped closer to him, "Spock, you must believe me, I did this to protect our people. That device was supposed to rebuild our planet. If I had known that any of this…" She was cut off by the proximity alarm. The Gorn were here. Spock looked at Jamie and T'Mar then he stepped near the Commodore.

"Sir, where is the communications bay? We must notify Starfleet Command at once," her first officer told the commodore.

Daniels glared as two of his officers entered the room, "This is my station, I'll notify Starfleet." He and his men walked out of the room but she heard him tell one of them to prep his shuttle for evacuation.

"I really hate him. _Like really hate him_ ," she said right before the station shuddered and knocked them off their feet.

Spock helped both women up, "Captain, I have doubts that Daniels will contact Starfleet."

"Anyone with brain should have doubts about him," Jamie muttered.

T'Mar looked at them, "I know this station, I can tell you where to go."

* * *

Jamie, Spock, Hendorff and Bates left the command deck in search of the communications bay. T'Mar informed them that they had to go through the mess deck, the Gorn were already there.

"Get down," Hendorff grabbed Jamie and pulled her behind an overturned table.

"Thanks, Cupcake," she said to the security officer.

He nodded, "No problem, ma'am." The team fought through to the other end of the room and went down a corridor.

"Jim, I'm surrounded by those giant lizard things, I could use some back up. I'm a little outgunned," Bones voice came over the communicators.

"Captain, I have lost contact with the defense team in the bio lab. Doctor McCoy is in section one-Alpha," T'Mar informed her.

Jamie took a breath, "We're on our way, Bones. Hang tight." They made to the area outside the labs; Bates rounded the corner first and was shot by a mounted gun.

"He is dead, Captain," Spock informed her.

"It's a lot more interesting when Bones says it. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that thing is a turret."

Spock nodded, "We may be able to hack it, if we can get close enough." She was only half-paying attention to him; Jamie touched the officer on ground in front of her.

"Rest well, Adam. Spock, if you can hack it then hack it. I would like the rest of us to get home in one piece. Gimme a hand, Cupcake." Jamie and Hendorff moved Bates' body out of the middle of the corridor and she made a mental note to send someone back for him if she could.

The lab was dark, save the emergency lighting. There were Gorn and infected crew members everywhere; dodging the turrets only made it worse. They killed the Gorn and knocked out the crew members before getting to section one-Alpha.

Jamie called for her husband, "Bones!" He was locked in a storage room with a security officer and a lab technician, "You guys okay?'

"Yea, we had to lock ourselves in when the Gorn showed up and started infecting people. We just need to grab my samples and…" Bones stopped talking when the power kicked back on. T'Mar informed them that she didn't know how but she did know why. The Gorn were trying to access the computer system in the labs. "Sounds like they're after information on the Helios device," her husband said to the room. How did she end up with someone who was so handsome and smart?

"The doctor may be correct. Despite the Gorn's animalistic appearance, they are a rather sophisticated race."

She nodded at Spock, "If they get that intel, they could end the universe as we know it. Last guy that got his hands on this kind of tech destroyed Vulcan, we can't let that happen again. Bones, you coming with us?"

He nodded, "Yea, yea. Why not?" Jamie looked at the officers that were locked in with Bones.

"What are your names?" she asked.

"I'm Tal," the Andorian security officer told her.

The lab tech spoke up, "Murphy, ma'am."

Jamie nodded, "The evacuation order was sounded, you two should get to the shuttle bay and help anyone you find get there too. The infected crew go down when stunned, the Gorn have to be shot or they'll keep coming. Stay together and go out the way we came." They nodded and left the room together. T'Mar told Jamie where to go to overload the system in order to stop the Gorn from taking the information. On their way out of the lab they grabbed Bones' samples, "You're close to an antidote?"

He nodded at her question, "You aren't the only badass in the family, darlin'." She smiled until T'Mar came over the comm.

"Kirk, Spock, the base is fully compromised. I believe there is nothing further we can do except evacuate with the rest of the station's crew." Jamie agreed with her, this place was a total loss.


	67. This Place is a Mess

"This place is a mess," Bones said as they made their way through the station. It was and Jamie was worried about all the people they brought to this station for medical treatment only to get overrun by the Gorn.

"Captain, you made it." Entering the shuttle bay, Jamie and her team ran into Lieutenant Abaran, Daniels' aide.

"Where's Daniels?" she asked. The young officer told her that he was nearing the shuttle bay.

"The team and I were about to go clear out the hostiles before we all get trapped here," Abaran said. Jamie nodded and offered to back them up; the place was crawling with the giant lizards. The Captain and her people cleared the area near a set of shuttles while Abaran focused on evac.

"Everybody get in. Let's move, move, move. Thanks for the assist, Captain Kirk," he said to her.

"No problem. We'll cover you; get your people outta here, Lieutenant," Jamie told him. She would have to remember to put that officer up for a commendation; he was doing Daniels' job. The two shuttles lifted off and just as Jamie moved to help another one, Daniels came running in with Gorn hot in his tail.

"Help, don't let them touch me. Get the hell outta my way!" He shoved a crewmen off the ramp to the shuttle and shut the door. Daniels lifted off.

One of his officers yelled at the shuttle, "Sir, you can't just leave us here." But he did, he left his crew standing in the shuttle bay.

"Commodore Daniels appears to be abandoning his post, Captain,"  Spock said. She glanced at her first officer.

"Wish I could say I was surprised, but… I'm not," Jamie told him.

"He's an ass," her husband added. Jamie chuckled as she shot the Gorn in the shuttle bay.

"You have no idea." Jamie didn't like him and neither did Pike.

Hendorff shook his head, "Jerk. What kind of person does... whatever that was?" Jamie chuckled at the officer's question. There is no way that a CO leaves the vessel with their crew still aboard. Jamie would die on her ship before she left any crew aboard and they all know it.

The group kept fighting as the other officers got the hell outta dodge. They were doing okay until the Gorn blasted the door.

"Jim, how are we gonna get these people outta here without an exit?" Bones asked her.

Jamie had an idea, "T'Mar, weapons status?" They were offline, of course. Spock must have been reading her mind; his idea was to overload the sub-space relay tower, converting it into a weapon. It was only going to give them one shot but that was all they needed in order to cover the shuttles.

"I'm gonna stay here, Jim. Help the injured. Be careful," Bones told her.

She nodded at her husband, "We will. Stay safe, Bonesy." She left the bay with Spock and Hendorff.

* * *

The three officers went to the power station first; it had to be online so that this could work. There weren't as many Gorn there as they expected but they took them out just the same. Hendorff kept watch while Jamie and Spock hacked into the system and restarted the power to the relay tower. Spock must have been snooping around because he found some of Daniels' audio logs.

"Captain, you may want to hear this," Spock told her. She clicked for it to play, ' _Damn their Vulcan ineptitude! Thanks to their incompetence, the Helios Device is failing. I should have take full control of the project myself and made it a Starfleet operation from the very beginning. I'm forced to listen to T'Mar's requests for help. To make matters worse, the Enterprise is already on it's way there. The last thing I need is that little girl, Kirk, sticking her nose in things and taking credit for salvaging the Helios Device. No doubt trying to make herself the hero again. I get that she's a hot little number but damn Admiral Pike for giving her the keys to the flagship; I bet she was sucking him off when he handed the Enterprise over. All my hard work could be for naught…_ ' Jamie took a deep breath and looked at her friend.

"Eww gross, Pike is practically my dad." Jamie put her hand on Spock's shoulder, "Breathe, buddy. It's nothing I haven't heard before… and Daniels isn't shy about saying to my face." Hendorff just shook his head and mumbled something about keeping Daniels away from him and not letting anybody else on the Enterprise hear it. She had to agree, if the Gorn don't kill Daniels, her crew might.

From the power station, they had to go to the relay tower. "Outside we go, guys. Suit up." The trio donned EVA suits and made their way outside the station to the tower. The whole area was abandoned but Jamie figured that it was due to the lack of oxygen. Getting there was the only easy part to her day. Spock tossed a wrench in the plan by telling her that they needed to manually override the safeties for the overload. Jamie and Hendorff worked together on one side while Spock worked on the other.

"You're smarter than people give you credit for, Captain," Cupcake said as he watched her hands fly over the console. She shrugged at the security officer's comment.

"You have no idea, Cupcake." After it was set, the hauled ass out of there before the room exploded. They jumped from the tower, using their suits' thrusters to clear the debris. Jamie spotted her ship and used the comm in her helmet. "Enterprise, show our guests the door."

"Yes, ma'am," came Sulu's response.

The three officers landed in a hull breach in Frontier Seventeen's crew quarters. Hendorff spotted an airlock, "This way, ma'am."

The power and gravity were welcome, the fire was not. They made it through the damaged room and Jamie hacked the sprinkler system; saving three officers from burning to death. "You guys alright?"

They all nodded, "Nothing major, Captain Kirk. Thanks for saving us. I bet Daniels split already." Jamie chuckled; they knew their CO.

"No problem. We're rounding up the last of my team, you guys can follow us out. Just stay low when the shooting starts… again," she told them.

They fought their way to the turbolift before T'Mar came over the comm, "Captain, we are under direct attack."

Spock answered his friend, "We are approaching your position." Jamie glanced at Spock as T'Mar responded.

"Use caution. They attack in large groups. I cannot fight them off much longer," the Vulcan woman told them.

"We're coming, T'Mar," Jamie said as the turbolift opened to one of the rooms near the command deck.

There were two security officers fighting the Gorn; Jamie, Spock and Hendorff jumped right in. The officers they were with grabbed weapons off the deck and started shooting too. The security officers fell in with them and they all entered the command deck. T'Mar and the last two officers were near the command chair, shooting at anything that came close. The command officer next to T'Mar went down and Jamie decided to get the Gorn's attention. She did it a little too well.

"Shit, move!" Jamie called. The Gorn turned their attention to the eight officers that just entered the room, Jamie, Hendorff and one of the other's dove to the right, Spock and two officers went left, the last two didn't move quick enough and got shot. Three Gorn materialized behind T'Mar, they killed the redshirt that was with her and grabbed the young Vulcan woman.

"Spock, Kirk!" T'Mar yelled. Shit, shit, shit. Spock jumped the console he was using for cover and tackled one of the Gorn just as Jamie comm'ed Scotty to beam them out. The Gorn went back to the Enterprise with them, not good.


	68. Get Me a Blood Sample

"Get me a blood sample." He was kidding right. Jamie loved her husband but they could barely catch this thing and Bones wanted a fucking blood sample.

After he tossed Spock into her and the others, the Gorn ran from the transporter room. This could be good, if they could catch him. Between the security team, Scotty and Uhura, they managed to lock it in crew quarters. They shot it a bunch of times but he infected some of the crew. Jamie didn't like stunning her own people.

"Bones, we got injured. I guessing the blood sample is for the antidote," she assumed. Jamie could almost hear Bones smirk when he started talking.

"You guess right, Jim. The Gorn's DNA coding is very complex. I need their DNA in order to fight the toxin that they used to infect our people." Jamie and Spock managed to run the Gorn from the room. He pried open the turbolift door and jumped through; the good thing was that he left behind blood. Spock scanned it and sent the scan to the Chief Medical Officer.

"Find me a cure, Bones," she said.

"I'm working on it," he told her.

Scotty came over the comm after her husband, "I think I can use that scan to determine where he's going." There were enough sensors on the ship, running his DNA though it would tell them where he was and where he was heading.

Uhura spoke up, "Captain, I think he's going to the shuttle bay." Jamie and Spock grabbed a turbolift and headed that way since Uhura was usually right and it was the only logical choice. As far as the Gorn knew, getting off the ship was the only way he would survive. Scotty confirmed what the communications officer told them.

"Send a security to help us out," Jamie informed them.

"I have a team here, Captain. He hasn't joined us yet," Kai came over the comm.

"He's coming, Kai. You guys stand by, we'll be there in a second. Scotty, lock everything down. He doesn't leave unless I give him permission," she told her favorite engineer.

"He's locked us out of the shuttle bay's systems. Gaila is working on restoring access. What the hell is he up to?" There was a pause before she heard Scotty's voice again, "He's powering up a shuttle. Captain, you cannae let him take one of my shuttles."

She chuckled, "Your shuttles?"

"I mean our shuttles," he corrected himself.

"Captain!" Jamie got to the end of the shuttle bay where Kai, Edwards, Josephs and a group of officers where fighting the large Gorn. The large Orion got fed up and looked at her for permission.

"Go high and I'll go low, Kai," she told the big Orion. Spock told the others to hold fire as Jamie and Kai tackled the Gorn. It tried to get Jamie off, Kai pulled the beast into a headlock and took him down but not completely out.

"Nice job, Kai. You do realize that he's not out." The officer nodded at her.

Spock knelt over him, "Captain, these creatures have a unique anatomy. It appears that he is incapable of movement but for how long, I do not know." Great, just great. Jamie looked at Spock as he knelt beside the downed Gorn.

"You want to do a mind meld? Seriously?"

Spock nodded, "Lieutenant Uhura could only decipher a small portion of their language, a mind meld is our only option to find answers." He was right. Jamie looked at the assembled security team and waved them over.

"We'll hold him down, just in case," she offered.

"I'm attempting to access this Gorn's memory," the Vulcan told her.

Jamie chuckled, "Not my first mind meld, Spock." He went into the creature's mind and after a few moments looked at her; he was pale. The captain looked at her team, "Guys, take it to the brig. I want a twenty-four-hour watch on him. He doesn't eat unless I know about it."

Kai grabbed a leg, "We'll take care of it, Captain." Spock hadn't moved.

"What did you see?" she asked.

"The Gorn are an extradimensional race that conquered their galaxy. They crushed every planet they encountered, killing those who resisted and enslaving the rest. The wormhole created via the Helios Device opened a gateway to their galaxy and allowed them entry into Federation territory. This led them to New Vulcan. He was the Gorn who ordered his men to kill us and took the Helios Device. They captured Surok for more information about the device, however, when they learned he had no knowledge of the device, they killed him and kidnapped T'Mar."

She touched his shoulder, "I'm sorry."

He looked at her, "The regret is not for myself. This is a great loss for the Vulcan people. We should seek to limit such losses." She understood what he was saying.

"They tortured and killed Surok for information on that thing. They'll do the same to T'Mar. She's your friend, how do you want to handle this one?"

"Our mission is clear, Jamie. We must go through the Rip and recover the Helios Device. Since we will already be there, we will just have to recover T'Mar as well."

Jaime chuckled, "You're starting to sound like me… and you didn't even have to do that mind meld thing with my face. I'm so proud." She hit the comm to the bridge and gave them the order; it wouldn't take then very long to get there. Jamie stored her jump suit and took the turbolift to sickbay without bothering to pull on a gold shirt. "Bones, got a second?" He nodded, gave an order to Chapel and followed Jamie into his office.

"That was craz…" She cut him off with a kiss. Bones wrapped his arms around her and pulled her as close to him as he could. He sat her on his desk and she wrapped her legs around him. Jamie knew that they didn't have time for this but she needed to feel his heart beating under her fingertips. "We're going through the Rip, aren't we?" he asked when she started to kiss his neck.

Jamie nodded, "We have to. With that device, they could pop up anywhere, which means nowhere is safe and they have T'Mar."

"You'll get her back."

She let out a breath, "I hope you're right." He chuckled against her skin.

"I know I'm right, I married a badass," Bones said against her neck. They were interrupted by a comm from the bridge.

"Wanna go upstairs with me?" Jamie asked. He nodded, she kissed him again, slid off his desk and they both went to the bridge.

* * *

"Having a hard time keeping her steady," Sulu informed her. Jamie had given the order to enter the rip.

"She cannae take much more of this, Captain. It's taking everything I got to keep the ship from falling apart. I hate to be such a bother, ma'am, but how much longer?" Scotty said over the comm from engineering.

Jamie chuckled, "We're almost through, Scotty. Not much longer." It was a rough ride but coming out on the other side was almost peaceful.

"Unknown planet dead ahead, ma'am," Chekov informed her. She ordered him to put it on screen.

Spock spoke from behind her, "Captain, this appears to be the same planet I saw during my mind meld." Jamie didn't want to see the look that Uhura sent him at that piece of information.

"Have they spotted us?" she asked.

Uhura responded, "It's doesn't appear so, Captain. If the Enterprise stays near the Rip, the interference should keep us hidden."

Jamie nodded, "Perfect. Chekov, take the controls. Sulu, you're with us. Our only option is to take a shuttle and you're one of the best pilots in the fleet."

He looked at her, "The odds of getting down there without being spotted are slim."

Jamie put her hand on his shoulder, "I have faith in you, Hikaru. Bones, you're coming too."

Her husband let out a breath, "Of course I am. You do realize that I'm a doctor, not a covert agent." Spock jumped in before Jamie had a chance to answer,

"As a doctor, you may be our only hope in defeating the Gorn. If you can discover the antidote, you will give us a tactical advantage," her first officer told him.

"Yea, I know. I don't have to be excited about it," Bones groaned.

Jamie chuckled, "Chekov, how are we on time?"

The navigator looked at her, "At zhe current rate of compression, zhe Rip vill close in approximately nine hours, ma'am." Nine hours isn't a whole lot of time.

"Chekov, I want this ship on the other side of the Rip before it closes. With or without us, that's a direct order." Everyone on the bridge looked at her.

"Captain?" came from Uhura at the same time Bones looked at her, "What?"

"I will not leave this ship to the mercy of those things if we can't get out in time. I won't do it. Chekov, you get my people out of here, even if you have to leave us behind." Her young friend looked at her and understood exactly what she wasn't saying.

"I vill make sure our family is safe, Jamie,"the kid told her.

She offered him a small smile, "Thanks, Pasha. Bones, Spock, Sulu, you're with me. Uhura, have Hendorff, Edwards, Kai and Chen meet us in the shuttle bay."

Ny nodded, "Aye, Captain. Be careful down there, _all of you_."

Jamie smiled, "We will." She looked at her husband who was talking to Chekov.

Bones had a hand on the navigator's shoulder, "I'm counting on you, kid. Seriously, don't leave us down there."

"Let's go, Bones," she called as she stepped onto the turbolift.

"Right behind ya, Jim."


	69. I'm Glad You Think it's Funny, Jim

Sulu was right when he said that they would be spotted. The Gorn had an anti-aircraft gun that shot them right out of the sky. The pilot got them down in one piece; farther away then she liked but alive. They split up into two teams; Sulu, Hendorff, Chen and Bones stayed with the shuttle while Jamie, Spock, Edwards and Kai moved to locate the Helios Device's transponder signal. The team had to base jump off the ridge they landed on in wing suits. They disabled the AA gun then continued through the underwater and underground tunnels to get to the encampment. There was a point, about halfway, when Spock comm'ed to check on Bones.

"Doctor McCoy, how are you progressing on an antidote to the Gorn venom?" the Vulcan asked.

Bones responded over the comm, "Almost there. It's a nasty little virus but Jim… I gotta tell ya… these Gorn are everywhere. Hendorff stunned a pregnant female that tried to attack us, then like an idiot, I tried to perform an emergency C-Section to save the little bastards. Octuplets. The damn things came out all teeth and claws; they almost bit my hand off." Jamie knew she shouldn't laugh but it was funny. Bones was always trying to help somebody, even if it hurt.

"I'm glad you think it's funny, Jim… How are you two doing?" She didn't really have an answer to his question.

"Peachy, Bones… just peachy. Stay on your comm in case I need you." She heard him chuckle.

"You got it, darlin'."

* * *

They shot their way to the Gorn's complex. Using stealth and well executed hand-to-hand combat, they got in under the radar. They found their way to what appeared to be a prison and a lab at the same time.

"Ma'am, Daniels' crew?" She nodded at Edwards, some of the men and women that they saw on the Starbase were dead, right here.

"There is nothing we can do, Jamie," Spock said with a hand on her shoulder; it was a very human gesture.

She looked at him, "I know… I know." She hated that these officers died like this. They were going through the prison/lab, Jamie was sure that around here the two things were one in the same, when they all heard a voice.

"I need help," Daniels. The team made it over to him and Spock looked at him.

"Commodore," there was ice in Spock's tone. As much as Jamie hated him, she would do the right thing.

"We'll get you out of here, sir." The officers looked at her like she was crazy and maybe she was.

"Captain?" they all asked.

"He's a Starfleet officer, gentlemen. We can't just leave him here." No matter how much she wanted too.

"This is your fault, Kirk. You brought those things after my station," Daniels is an idiot and even though they were short on time, Jamie was done holding her tongue with him.

"Yea… it's really not on me. You wanted praise and recognition that you didn't earn, so you activated Helios early despite T'Mar and Surok's warnings. Your actions caused the Rip that brought the Gorn through. We watched you abandon your crew. You lied to T'Mar and you got Surok killed. We found your audio logs and some of Surok's so don't even think about trying to pin this on me. I'm sure Starfleet will just love to hear _everything_ we found. Being recognized isn't all it's cracked up to be, by the way. Did you ever consider that I never sought out to be a hero? I would rather live in anonymity with my husband and my kid… instead of people calling me a slut or being reminded that my dad is dead. I'm not special, I'm just a girl from Iowa who is tired of watching people die, even people who hate me for no reason. I think you used to be a good officer before you decided to be a selfish prick, so I'm going to ask you to help me. You want to be the hero? Then be the hero and tell us where they took T'Mar, sir." The other officers just looked at her. Jamie rarely talked about George or what it's like being his daughter. To Jamie, she wasn't really his kid anyway, Sam was but Jamie never got the chance to be.

"I… I don't know where she is," Daniels told them. She nodded and looked at Kai and Edwards.

"Get him outta here, we'll get T'Mar and meet you outside," she told the officers.

* * *

Jamie and Spock went deeper into the complex. They were onto something when Spock grabbed her.

"Grenade!" he warned.

She looked around, "Shit. It's an ambush. Don't give 'em an inch." No, no, no. They were outnumbered and seriously outgunned. They fought, hard. In the end, they were overpowered. Guns were pointed in their faces and they were taken into the room where T'Mar was being held.

"T'Mar!" Spock called. She was a mess, they tortured her like Jamie thought they would; she had green blood all over the place. Kai was on his knees with a weapon pointed at his head, Jamie looked him over.

"Daniels and Edwards?" she asked.

Kai looked at her, "Dead, ma'am. I'm sorry, they overpowered me."

She shook her head, "Not your fault, LT. You did good." A huge, huge, Gorn entered the room and Spock stepped forward. "Easy, Spock. No need to go full human on me… not yet anyway." The Big Gorn growled something at his men and then something in Jamie's face before the three officers were forced into what Jamie could only describe as an arena. "I think our bad day just got a whole lot worse, boys." Kai nodded and Spock looked at her.

"Unfortunately, I believe you are correct, Captain," her first officer said.

* * *

They were forced to fight several waves of creatures in the arena for the Gorn's amusement. After defeating what Jamie was calling the Gorn Champion, Spock was infected with the Gorn venom and they were forced to fight to the death.

"Spock… listen to me. Please. You don't want to hurt me, I'm practically your sister. Your family. Fight, I know you're in there. You gotta fight," she pleaded.

Kai was between them, Jamie knew that Spock cared if he hurt them but there was nothing he could do. She didn't want to hurt him and she didn't want him to wake up after hurting her. They fought him but they did their best not to actually hurt her friend. Jamie and Kai had the advantage of knowing how Spock fought and because they still had their clarity, they could dodge his attacks. The shuttle showing up was the best thing in the world. Spock had tossed Kai and had Jamie pinned when he went down with a tranquilizer in his neck. Jamie looked up at the shuttle and saw her husband with a sniper rifle in hand. He might not realize it but he's getting laid when this was all over.

"Captain?" Spock looked at her.

"You're alright, Spock," she assured her friend.

He took a breath, "The antidote?"

She smiled, "Yea… looks like I married a miracle worker. You owe him one."

Bones spoke up from the shuttle, "Dropping you some gear. Sulu says he can't put this thing down until you clear the area. Go get 'em." Jamie smiled as she, Spock and Kai grabbed the weapons Bones dropped to clear out a landing zone.

"What about T'Mar?" her friend asked.

Jamie glanced at Spock, "We'll get our chance. They need her alive so as much as it pains me, we'll have to wait. We got a shuttle to catch." They cleared out the landing zone and Sulu put the shuttle down long enough to pick the three officers up. Bones was getting some crazy readings.

"Jim, something's going on," her husband told her. Spock theorized that the Helios Device was re-activated and that they were using T'Mar to do it. They were gonna need back up if they were do anything about it. Jamie ordered Sulu back to the ship.


	70. We're Gonna Have to Split Up

"We're gonna have to split up," her husband muttered. Sometimes, she was convinced that Bones was reading her mind.

While on approach to the ship, they discovered that it was under heavy attack by the Gorn. By some miracle, Kyle managed to beam them over. Jamie looked at the team she had with her and decided to send Bones, Kai, Chen and Sulu to clear the infected crew. They were going to take the antidote to the environmental control center.

"Scotty, please tell me you can hear me," she said into her comm. He could and wasn't happy about the state of their ship.

"We need to secure Engineering, lass. Between me, you, Spock and Keenser, we should be able to restore the warp core but the place is crawling with those lizard things." Jamie and Spock high-tailed it to find her friend. She ran right into Rand, Zahra and Gaila on the way.

"You ladies come with us," she ordered the trio. Without power, Bones' team couldn't get the cure to the whole crew. Of course, the Gorn were guarding the damn warp core. Scotty, Gaila and Keenser got the core restarted while Jamie, Spock, Zahra and Rand fought off the Gorn. "Bones, we got the power back."

"I copy ya, Jim. We're all set up here, it'll take a few minutes but the cure is airborne." Jamie let out a breath that she didn't know she was holding. Bones informed her that aside from headaches, the crew would be fine and was already returning to normal. Scotty came over the comm to warn her that they were pissing the Gorn off. The antidote was having an effect on them.

"Captain, we're pinned down in astrometrics, we could us some backup," it was Freeman; she nabbed him from the academy when she got command. He took some officers to the lab in order to help the stellar cartography team but they were getting their asses handed to them. Jamie left Zahra and Rand with Scotty to hold Engineering while she, Spock and Gaila ran to help her officers. Jamie, Spock and Gaila flanked the Gorn attacking her crew and killed them.

"You guys okay?" she asked. They all informed her that they had nothing more than some minor injuries, except Chekov, his leg was busted. Jamie pulled his arm over her shoulder and Gaila took the other side, the whole group went to medical. Bones had officers posted at the entry points to sickbay. "Nice work, Bonesy."

"I might've borrowed a trick or two from your playbook," he said with a chuckle as he took the teen from her and Gaila. Even guarded, that didn't stop the Gorn from making a play for sickbay, the cure in the air was messing with them.

"Ma'am, we got hostiles incoming. A lot of them," a security officer named Grey informed her. There were three entrances into sickbay; port, starboard and center. Gaila, Grey and Freeman took some men to the port entrance while Spock, Kai and Chen took some men to the starboard side and Jamie, Sulu, and Hendorff took a team to the center entrance. Bones' people kept themselves and the injured clear of the firefight. Wave after wave of Gorn kept coming. Jamie knew that they were trying to distract them but she wasn't sure why.

"They're up to something," she told her first officer when they killed the last wave. No sooner had she said the words when Uhura yelled over the sickbay's intercom.

"Spock! He wants you to hand over the ship," the communications officer yelled.

Spock practically growled, "Do NOT harm her."

Jamie took a breath, "This is a trap if I've ever seen one."

"If they hurt her…" Spock started.

"They'll have to deal with both of us," she finished.

"Not just you, I'm coming with," Sulu informed her.

Not so surprising, Hendorff spoke up, "Me too."

Jamie smirked, "The rest of you stay here. Lieutenants, you're with us."

Jamie, Spock, Sulu and Hendorff made their way to the bridge where the Gorn they capture was holding Uhura hostage.

The Gorn started talking and Uhura translated for him. "Pathetic creatures. I have allowed you too much freedom. Override the systems and give us control of this ship or the woman dies." Spock stepped forward but Jamie stopped him; she had an idea. The Gorn had pissed her off enough and she was just done dealing with these things on her ship.

"You want control," she said. "I'll give you control."

The officers in the room looked at her but she just winked at Sulu as the shuttle they left outside crashed into the viewscreen. Everything froze for a second then the room decompressed. Spock grabbed Uhura's arm, Hendorff grabbed one of the stations behind her chair, Sulu held onto the command chair and Jamie was hanging onto Chekov's station.

"Computer, repair bridge," she ordered with the last of her breath. The breach sealed itself and the whole group hit the floor. "Ny, you alright?"

"Yes, Captain," her friend sighed.

Jamie hopped in her chair and hit the intercom, "All hands, report to stations." This was ending, soon. The Gorn messed with the wrong crew.

* * *

They were out of options so Jamie, Spock, Chen, Grey and Hendorff launched a rescue mission and went to the Gorn ship where T'Mar and the Helios Device were. During their search they found something very interesting.

"Fascinating," Spock said.

Jamie chuckled, "I hate it when you say that. It's never anything good."

Spock nodded, "It appears that these chambers are bio-enhancement tanks." That is fascinating.

"Bones, you getting any of this?" Jamie asked as she shifted so the holo-recorder on her suit could pick up the room they were in.

Her husband's voice came over the comm, "All that stuff looks like genetic engineering gear to me. It explains their enhancements and the tanks you found on that planet." They, gladly, made their way out of that area of the ship and kept looking for Helios and T'Mar.

"This place is massive, Captain," Chen said from her right side.

She nodded, "Spock, wanna help me hack in and see if we can narrow our search." They found a console with access to the secure systems and located the targeting platform, they also located the Helios Device and T'Mar.

"Do you have a plan, Captain?" her first officer asked.

Jamie nodded, "If we hide in these tanks and hijack a transport, we should be able to get up there." They all looked at her, Spock spoke.

"I am proud of you, Jamie." What? Jamie raised an eyebrow.

"For what?" she asked her friend.

"Usually, your plans involve mindlessly running into danger," Spock told her. The security officers all chuckled at the exchange.

"Not 'mindlessly'… but the whole 'running into danger' thing is still on the table, boys," she told them with a smile.

They didn't know how to get the chambers to work, so they comm'ed Scotty. The tanks sent out signals, they just had to find one that about to be picked up and Scotty would match the signal for them. It was a tight squeeze but they sucked it up; Sulu told them that the Enterprise's shields were down to thirty percent. They had to move, fast.

* * *

"Well, I'm gonna go out on a limb and say, that's the central computer," Jamie muttered after they were deposited in a large room. Spock and the officers nodded.

There were five consoles, they had to disable them all. Of course, there were turrets and Gorn in the way. Jamie, Grey and Chen went right while Spock and Hendorff went left. They disabled the turret to disable the console. The security officers kept the Gorn off their backs. Jamie was on her second console when she heard Chen shout.

"Grey!" the security officer called. She glanced behind her to see the the kid on the deck with a hole in his chest and the other officer over him trying to bring him back.

"Chen, look at me. Erik, Erik! Marc is gone, we gotta finish this or we'll lose everybody else," she told him.

He nodded, "Yes, ma'am." She finished what she was doing and they met Spock and Hendorff in the middle.

The burly officer looked at her, "We lost Grey?" She nodded.

"It's not your fault, Captain," Hendorff told her. She offered him as small smile as she and Spock disabled the list console and destroyed the computer.

"Captain, you there?" it was Sulu.

"I copy, Sulu." He informed her that they took out the weapons and that they had a chance to get the Enterprise back to Federation space in one piece. "That's good news, Mister Sulu."

Spock looked at her, "Your celebration may be premature. We must still complete our mission."

Jamie chuckled, "Well Mama Ella says that you gotta celebrate the little victories. I'm not arguing with Bones' mama, I may be crazy but I ain't that crazy." Spock was actually amused.

"That is a wise decision. I would not endeavor to ignore advice from Mrs. McCoy. She is… scary."

Bones' voice came over the comm, "Damn straight."

* * *

Getting to T'Mar and the Helios device wasn't as hard as Jamie thought it might be. They used the ship's transporters and beamed to the room where the device and T'Mar were being held.

"What are they doing to her?" Jamie asked her friend.

Spock looked at her, "I believe the Gorn are somehow forcing her to operated the device." Jamie was hoping he didn't say that, it was one thing when they only suspected it and another thing to see it.

"We gotta get her out of here, Spock," she whispered knowing he could hear her.

The Vulcan readied his weapon, "As long as the device is operational, we will not be able to beam out." Jamie decided that destroying the Helios device was the best option, she was done fighting for this thing and there was no way in hell she was leaving it for someone else like Daniels or the Gorn to get their hands on it. There weren't many Gorn in this room, she guessed that they never thought anyone would get this far. The team took them out and disabled the plasma transducers. As soon as they were down, the Helios Device was in the open.

"Take it out," Jamie ordered. The whole team opened fire on it and destroyed it into a bunch of pieces, it set a pulse through the ship.

"I don't know what you just did over there, lass, but I have a lock on ya. Grey's life signs…" came the chief engineer's voice.

"Are gone, we know. Beam him over anyway, I'm not leaving his body here," she told him. Jamie took a couple steps in T'Mar's direction when the big Gorn from the planet returned, he yelled something at them but Jamie really didn't care what he had to say.

"Get to T'Mar, Captain, I will handle him," Spock told her.

"You sure?" she asked her friend.

"As you would say, I have a score to settle." Well, shit. Mental note: Don't fuck with Spock.

Jamie, Hendorff and Chen fought off the soldiers that the big Gorn brought with him and got to T'Mar.

"Kirk," the Vulcan sighed. Jamie was glad that the woman was mostly okay. She hacked the controls holding T'Mar in and Hendorff lifted the injured Vulcan in his arms.

"I got her, ma'am." So, Hendorff wasn't that bad. Jamie nodded and looked to where Spock beat the crap out of the Gorn leader.

"Scotty, get us outta here." The familiar lights of the transporter swirled around them and they were back on the Enterprise. Jamie knew they weren't outta the woods yet. "Sulu, take us home," she called over the comm. The helmsman acknowledged her orders. Jamie looked at the officers with her, "We better get to medical before Bones shows up and hypos all of us into next year."


	71. You Wanted to See Me, Captain

"You wanted to see me, Captain," Bones asked. She laughed at the look he gave her when he said it. Bones didn't refer to her by rank often, someone had to keep her honest as Hoshi would say.

"I did, _doctor_. I have a problem and you're the only person that can help."

He looked at her, "What might that be?" Jamie took a breath from her spot sitting at the end of their bed.

"I'm sore. I really wanna take this crap off but I can't move," she told him. Bones laughed as he leaned over and kissed her.

"I think I can help with that, darlin'. I thought you told me you were fine in sickbay."

Jamie shrugged, "I am fine, it's been a very long two days and all the adrenaline is gone." He chuckled and kissed her again. He pulled her boots off and slid her shirt over her head. He sucked in a breath and she looked at him, "What?" Jamie had a bruise from her hip to right under her arm, she had no clue when or where she got it. "I'm fine, Bones. I don't even feel it." Of course, he poked her in the side and dared her with his eyes to say she didn't feel it. "Okay, it hurts a little but not that much."

He glared at her, "Jim…"

She stopped him and stood up, "I'm fine. No, you know what, I'm not fine. Giant lizard things tried to kill us. My ship… my home was attacked. One of our Commodores caused a Rip in space. New Vulcan is a mess. Surok was killed, T'Mar was tortured, and we lost nineteen crew members, three of which were with me when they died. My side is killing me but I don't care because right now, all I want is my husband. So, if you're planning to stand there and glare at me, go back to sickbay and I'll go help Scotty or some…" He cut her off with a kiss. She deepened it and pulled him closer as he wrapped his arms around her. Jamie pushed the uniform shirts off of him and let them fall to the floor. Bones wasn't without his bruises, "What's that?"

He looked down and muttered "nothing."

Jamie chuckled, "Nothing? That's a bruise, a huge bruise. Where did you get that?"

He shrugged, "No clue, darlin'." She ran her fingers over the discolored skin on his right shoulder.

"I'm sorry," she sighed.

Bones looked at her, "You're kidding, right? This isn't your fault, Jim. You and the hobgoblin pulled off another impossible feat. Yea, I got a little banged up, we all did. I'm fine, Chapel already checked me over."

Jamie laughed, "All that crap you give me about getting hurt…"

"Yea, I know," Bones kissed her again and pressed her against the mattress, pulling of the last of their clothes as he went. She wrapped her legs around his waist and circled her arms around his neck, pulling him close. There was nothing gentle about it when they brought their bodies together.

The reality slammed into her like a ton of bricks; they almost lost this fight. If it had gone differently, she would've lost him; the thought brought tears to her eyes as their bodies moved together hard and fast. This was a side of Bones that she'd seen before, after Nero almost killed them. His movements started out sure and measured but his control was beginning to slip. Jamie clung tightly to him; she wasn't going to last much longer, she was so close. Bones picked up his pace and whispered in her ear.

"I'm fine darlin'. I'm fine and I'm right here." She didn't realize that she had vocalized some of her thoughts. Jamie gasped as every inch of him pushed into her, over and over. His voice was thick with love, exhaustion, and lust; it sent shivers coursing through her and pulled her over the edge. One more thrust and she felt him shudder as he followed. "We're okay, Jim. You made sure that we were all okay." He knew what was bothering her, again. She looked at him and smiled.

"I hate you sometimes." He kissed her shoulder and rearranged them so that they laying side by side, facing each other.

"Ha, you couldn't hate me if you tried. Now, tell me what Pike said," her husband said. She chuckled because he was right, then she told him everything that she was allowed to tell him about what the admiral said while they laid exhausted in their bed, Bones running his fingers through her hair. Starfleet was going to give them a few weeks off since the ship got damaged.

"Bones, I wanna go to Iowa." Aside from working on the Enterprise, Jamie stayed far, far away from Riverside. With Aurelan's death, she knew her brother went back to his hometown. The house belonged to the Kirk siblings anyway.

"You want to see Sam?"

She nodded, "Yea. I feel like I just abandoned him."

"You didn't, he needed to be without you for a while. I think we should go see him, check on Pete and Alex. Maybe grab Jo… she's in school but we'll still get to see her." Jamie smiled and kissed his jaw.

"Sounds like a plan, Bonesy."

* * *

Shore leave starting was the best thing Jamie could think of in a long time. Scotty wasn't going but she didn't expect him to, their girl needed some love and he wasn't leaving her with the idiots from the docks on Starbase One. They decided to go to Georgia first and Fred met them at the shuttle port. He pulled them each into a hug.

"How's my favorite sister? Heard you got hurt," the tall man said. 

Jamie chuckled, "I'm always getting hurt but I'm okay. I married a doctor for a reason." That earned her a laugh from both men.

If there was any relationship that surprised her, it was how close she and Fred got. Jamie doesn't know why she never thought of it but she really was Fred's only sister. He had plenty of friends but most of them were guys, he was an only child and Bones was his only brother. Even though they were in-laws, they never really acted like it; Fred grew up down the road from the McCoy kids.

"How's mama?" Bones asked as they got into the hovercar and Fred went on to give them updates about everyone. They arrived at Joanna's school a few minutes before the day ended, Fred and Donna didn't tell the little girl that her parents were coming.

"She's gonna flip," Donna told Jamie over the comm when the talked to her the day before.

"Here they come," Fred warned when the bell went off, signaling the end of the day. Jamie and Bones stood next to Fred in their uniforms as all the kids rushed out of the building. A smile broke out on her face when she saw the youngest McCoy heading their way. It took Jo a second to register what she was seeing but Jamie was sure the whole state heard their daughter.

"MAMA! DADDY!" The other kids, parents and teachers moved out of Joanna's way as she ran right into Jamie's arms. The Starfleet Captain didn't care one bit that she had tears in her eyes as she held her daughter tight.

"Hey, sweetie."


	72. Stop Fidgeting, Jim

"Stop fidgeting, Jim," Bones told her from the driver's seat. Jamie was playing with her wedding ring and tapping her fingers. She doesn't know why she's so nervous, it's just Sam. After spending the week in Georgia, Jamie, Bones and the cutest little girl on the planet went to Iowa. She was antsy. She's talked to her brother since Deneva but she hadn't seen him in person, it made her uneasy. "He doesn't blame you, it's not your fault and you're driving me nuts with the fidgeting."

She took a breath, "Sorry, sweetheart. I'm just…"

"I know. It'll be okay." They parked the hovercar in front of her father's old house. The door opened when they got to the porch.

"Hey, Jimmy, Leo," came the familiar voice of her big brother. She smiled as Sam pulled her into a hug.

"Hi, Sammy. How's my favorite brother?" she asked.

He chuckled, "I'm managing. Hey, jujube." He let go of Jamie and picked up Joanna.

"Hi, Uncle Sam," the girl said, pulling a smile outta the taller Kirk. Bones touched Sam's shoulder and the two men shared a look before they all went inside. The house was nothing like she remembered it. It was light and open and… welcoming. Sam chuckled at the look that must've been on her face.

"I've had some time on my hands. Pete has my old room and Alex has the old guest room. I even redid your room," he told her. Jamie raised an eyebrow. "I updated it for you… no way you two would fit on the old bed. And you know… you were eleven the last time you lived here." That was true.

She looked around, "As much as I love you…"

Sam smiled, "They're out back." Jamie glanced at her brother, husband and daughter before she walked through the house and out the back door. She heard her nephews talking to each other, she leaned against the railing and watched them play Avengers. Pete was Iron Man and Alex was Hulk.

Jamie smiled, "You know, when me and your dad played that, I was Iron Man and your dad was Captain America. We used to run around shooting at bad guys and knocking 'em out with his shield."

The two boys ran to her, "AUNT JIMMY!"

She laughed as they collided with her, "How are my favorite boys?"

They both smiled and said "good" at the same time. They asked her to play with her and assigned her the role of Captain Marvel, the Carol Danvers version. Joanna joined them at some point and decided to be Spider-man.

"We should take holos," she heard her husband say to her brother.

Jamie shrugged, "We're superheroes, take all the holos you want, citizen."

Pete 'landed' next to her and agreed, "Yea, Uncle Bones, we're superheroes."

"I take the holos… it's my day job," Joanna popped in as Spidey.

Alex looked at Bones and roared, "Hulk no like holo, puny human." Of course, they all fell over laughing at him.

"Okay… that's the cutest thing ever," she said as she picked up her nephew.

Sam smiled, "Just wait until you have one." Jamie and Bones shared a look.

Joanna smiled, "Yea, mama. Just wait."

Babies was a non-topic with Doctor and Captain McCoy. Did she and Bones want them? Yes. Was it going to happen anytime soon? Probably not. It was bad enough that they didn't have Joanna with them all the time but to have another child that they weren't with would break her heart. She's been the child in that equation her whole life, it sucks. Bones has been telling her that she wasn't her mother and he wasn't going anywhere but she still wasn't sold on the idea. They decided to leave the subject alone for the time being and get a few years on the Enterprise out of the way first. If she was being honest, the idea of being responsible for another life, terrified her. Being a commanding officer, that was her reality but there was a difference commanding adults and caring for a child. Joanna terrified her, she didn't even give birth to the girl but the idea of something happening to her… Jamie wasn't going there.

She was pulled out of her thoughts by her brother, "I think I broke Jimmy."

Bones chuckled, "No, we just avoid baby talk. Between our job, the number your mom did on you guys before she died and how much leaving Jo bothers us, she's terrified by the idea." Sam nodded and Joanna looked at her.

"Leaving me bothers you?" the girl asked.

Jamie smiled, "Like you wouldn't believe, sweetie. Ask your dad."

Jo looked at Bones, who nodded, "She misses you like crazy. Not more than me, but almost."

"Do you miss us too, Aunt Jimmy?" Peter asked her.

She smiled, "You know the answer to that Peter James."

He smiled, "That's a big, fat 'yes'."

Jamie chuckled, "Yep." They went back to playing their game, Sam was Captain America and Bones was Thor. Jamie laughed a few times at Bones and 'Mjölnir' fighting the fictional bad guys but the kids were all thrilled so the adults just went with it.

* * *

Eventually, they had dinner –an adventure- and the kids had baths –another adventure- before bedtime. Joanna opted to sleep in Alex's room with him, she even read him a bedtime story. Jamie, Bones and Sam sat in the living room, "You guys want a beer?" Jamie accepted her brother's offer while Bones declined.

"How are you doing, really?" Bones asked.

Her brother took a breath, "It's not easy but I look at those boys and I know they need me. I have my days when I roll over expecting her to be there and usually it's Alex. I'm not my mother, so there's that. I was talking to Frank the other day… never thought we'd have something in common, or see eye-to-eye but on my really bad days, talking to him helps."

Jamie smiled, "How is he?"

Sam shrugged, "Good, wants you to bring the family by while you're here. I showed him a holo from your wedding, he had tears in his eyes."

She chuckled, "Frank turned into a sap."

Her brother laughed, "Yea, but he loves us… despite mom. And despite how I was back then."

Jamie nodded, "You were a kid. Your dad died and then your mom married some guy and split, he understood, even when you didn't."

"When did you become so wise?" Sam asked.

"No clue." Was her reply. Her brother looked at them for a second, there was something on his mind. "Okay, Sammy, talk."

Sam smiled, "I want to ask you guys about something." They both nodded and he continued, "I um… I… If, God forbid, if something happened to me… I was wondering if you… if you guys would take custody of the boys."

Jamie was shocked, "Us, you want us? What about Aury's family?"

Sam smiled, "Yes, I want you. I talk to her parents sometimes but they keep trying to control how the boys are raised and how they heal like they know what it's like to lose one of your parents or something. They aren't that bad but they aren't family to me, or to the boys, really… you guys are. Even on the other side of the quadrant, you guys are more their family than Aury's folks. If something happens to me, I want to know that they'll be safe and loved and I know that if they're with you, they will be." Jamie looked at Bones, who had a thoughtful look on his face.

"You're sure about this?" he asked Sam.

Her brother nodded, "Yes."

Bones looked at Jamie, "I'm in if you are."

"Nothing is gonna happen to you, but if something does, we'll take care of the boys. I promise," she told her brother. Sam looked like a weight was lifted from his shoulders.

"Thank you. You have no idea..." Sam said as he walked over and pulled her into a hug. "You too, Leo." Her husband chuckled and stood to hug him too.


	73. How Did You Manage This?

"How did you manage this?" Bones asked her.

Jamie shrugged, "The work is done, everyone is on leave and I'm the Captain." They were on the Enterprise with Joanna, Peter, Alex and Sam; she promised the kids a tour and she was making good on the promise before Joanna had to go back to school. Scotty was a kid-magnet; the trio of short people had him showing them stuff on the ship.

Sam nudged Jamie, "He's good with kids."

Jamie chuckled, "Yea, I know." Scotty was gonna make a good –and very cool- dad, one day.

"MISTER SPOCK!" the kids yelled as Jamie's first officer walked into the room, the kids love Spock and they bring out a different side to him. Jamie, Sam and Bones laughed as the Vulcan in question addressed the children.

"Miss Joanna, Mister Peter, Mister Alexander," Spock said. The kids all smiled at the fact that he remembered their names, they didn't know that Spock generally remembers everything. They asked him a million questions and he answered every single one.

"Please tell me that someone is recording this," Bones whispered in her ear.

* * *

They were getting to the end of the tour when Jamie's PADD beeped with an emergency flash message. "I'm being recalled to HQ. Something happened and they're calling for an emergency session of the commanding and executive officers of all the ships in the area. Spock, we gotta go."

Bones nodded, "Should I go too?"

She shook her head, "No, but we might need to recall the crew."

Bones nodded, "I can figure out who's already here and help Uhura if a recall is issued." She nodded and turned to her brother.

He smiled, "Go be the big hero." Jamie smiled; she kissed her daughter and her nephews goodbye before moving to her brother.

"I love you, Sammy." He smiled as he hugged her,.

"I love you too, Jimmy. Be safe," Sam told her.

She nodded, "Scotty?"

"I'll get the Kirk-McCoy crew home in one piece," her friend told her. She did another round of hugs -just in case- and kissed her husband before running to put on her uniform and getting to HQ.

* * *

She and Spock were beamed outside the building and walked in together. The pair stepped into the turbolift to take them up to the Daystrom conference room when her PADD beeped, she didn't recognize the origin of the message but something in the coding told her to open it.

_I don't have a lot of time, so I'll make this quick. Most of what Marcus is about to tell you is a lie. Trust none of it, I'll give you the real story when you're back on your ship. I'm bringing someone with me. The shit is about to hit the fan. Watch your six, J.T._

Jamie hit the command to delete the information from her PADD. Spock looked at her, "That is disturbing news, Captain."

Jamie nodded, "Yea, I know him well enough to know that he means everything that he just said."

They made their way into the conference room; Jamie did a quick scan for anyone they knew.

"Captain Kirk," someone called. She looked up at Captain Bannock, the commanding officer of the Republic.

"Captain Bannock, it's good to see you again. How's the Republic?" she shook the man's hand.

"It's good. I tried to get some of your crew but you guys seemed to be a package deal after the Nero incident," he told her.

Jamie smiled, "Yea, we kinda are. Do you know what's going on?"

The other captain shook his head, "No more than you do. I don't like it though." She nodded, she's been thinking the same thing.

They were all ordered to sit down and Jamie looked at Marcus. She's met him a few times but she tended to stay away from him, he always rubbed her the wrong way but it was Trip's warning that caused Jamie to actively avoid being near the man if she could help it.

"Thank you for meeting on such short notice. Be seated," Admiral Marcus addressed the room. They all sat down and he began, "By now some of you have heard what happened in London. The target was a Starfleet data archive, now it's a damn hole in the ground. Forty-two men and women are dead. One hour ago, I received a message from a Starfleet officer who confessed to carrying out this attack, that he was being forced to do it by this man." The image of a man appeared on everyone's monitors; he was handsome enough. Jamie realized that the holo was from a Starfleet file.

Marcus continued, "Commander John Harrison. He's one of our own and he is the man responsible for this act of savagery. For reasons unknown, John Harrison has just declared a one man war against Starfleet and under no circumstances are we to allow this man to escape Federation space. You here tonight represent the senior command of all the vessels in the region. And in the name of those we lost, you will run this bastard down. This is a manhunt, pure and simple, so let's get to work." He paused for a moment to let it sink in.

Jamie began looking through the holos and reports as Marcus continued, "Earth's Perimeter sensors have not detected any warp signatures leaving the system, so we know he can't be far. You will park your ships in a blockade formation and deploy search vehicles and landing parties to run down every lead. This man has shown willingness to kill innocent people, so the rules of engagement are simple. If you come across this man, and fear for your life and the lives of those nearby, you are authorized to use deadly force on the subject." Jamie glanced at Spock, they were thinking the same thing; In what universe is it okay to just kill someone? She looked at one image of Harrison and something caught her attention, she leaned closer to Spock.

"What's in the bag?" she whispered.

He examined the image himself, "Interesting."

"Everything okay over there, Kirk?" Marcus asked.

She nodded, "Yes, sir. My first officer and I were just running through some theories, sir. Apologies."

Marcus looked at her, "You got something to say, Kirk, say it. Tomorrow is too late." Everyone in the room turned their attention to her.

"It just seems odd to me that he targeted an archive. It's like bombing a library. All that information is...is public record. If he really wanted to damage Starfleet, this could just be the beginning," she told him. The lack of logic in this plan was overwhelming.

"The beginning of what, Miss Kirk?" Marcus asked her.

She looked at him, "Sir, in event of an attack, protocol mandates that senior commands gather, Captains and first Officers, at Starfleet HQ, right here... in this room."

Spock added to that thought, "It is curious Harrison would commandeer a jump ship without warp capability…" Spock stopped speaking as the room was enveloped in red light. Jamie stood and looked out the window. This was not good.

"Clear the room!"  she yelled to the other officers in the room. She hit the deck as the ship opened fire on the officers. Spock grabbed Captain Bannock, who was next to him and pulled the older man to the floor.

Bannock opened his comm, "We need air defense team, Daystrom conference room!" She knew she had to do something; she helped Commander Lance get to cover then she grabbed a rifle and started shooting at the ship. Jamie knew she wasn't doing any damage, she needed… to damage the turbines. She tied her weapon an emergency hose and tossed it at the ship's turbine, which sucked it up, pulled the mount off the wall and into the turbines which brought down the ship. Jamie looked at it and noticed Harrison beaming out before the ship is destroyed.

"Spock, you alright?" she ran back into the conference room.

He looked at her, "I am, Captain." She looked around the room, there were multiple officers down. Marcus was okay but Jamie had a feeling that this was meant for him.


	74. He Wants Us to Go Where?

"He wants us to go where?" Bones asked.

Jamie looked at her husband, "Yea. If this Harrison doesn't kill us, the Klingons might. Fun, right?"

"You aren't really going after this guy?" her husband asked her.

She shrugged, "Depends on what my uncle thinks."

Bones looked around, "You talked to Trip?"

"He sent me a message. He's on the Enterprise already," she told him. The pair got on the shuttle and sat down.

Spock looked at her, "Captain, I must object to our mission parameters."

"You know, I should note the date and time… that way, next time I go off the reservation, I'll have proof that you do, in fact, oppose HQ's orders. Cool your jets, Spock. I'm not sold on shooting torpedoes at the Klingon homeworld either. I'm not as dumb as Marcus thinks I am," she told her first officer. Scotty had figured out where Harrison went and Marcus ordered Jamie to pursue the lunatic to Qo'noS. He gave her seventy-two long-range torpedoes and told her to " _park on the edge of the Neutral Zone, lock on to Harrison's position, you fire, you kill him and haul ass._ " There was no fucking way; that's suicide. And Marcus knew it.

* * *

They got to the ship and walked right into Scotty arguing with a security officer that she didn't know, she figured that he was with the torpedoes. "Captain," the engineer looked at her.

"Yea, Scotty?" She better get it over with.

"I cannae authorize any weapons on board this ship without knowing what's inside them," the Scot told her.

She nodded, "So don't."

Scotty said, "What?" at the same time Bones said "Jim?" and Spock said "Captain?" It was almost comical.

"If you don't want to sign for then don't… Someone blew up an archive, I was almost killed last night in a firefight and there's a terrorist running around. I don't have the energy to argue with you about following an Admiral's orders. You don't want to sign for them, then don't, but you get the honor of going down to HQ, interrupting the multitude of briefings and recovery efforts so that you can explain to Admiral Marcus why. I have enough of a headache," she told him. All three men looked at each other.

"Fine… but I don't recommend using them," Scotty said as he signed the PADD.

She nodded, "Noted. Meet in my ready room in ten." Bones and Spock looked at her when they entered the turbolift. "Don't look at me like that. I don't want the damn things either… but I don't want to give them to another ship. I have no problem ignoring Marcus' order but someone else will do exactly as he told them to and start a fucking war in the process. They're better here than somewhere else." Both men regarded her for a moment. "I'm crazy, not stupid, guys."

Bones chuckled, "Ain't that the truth." She looked at him. "I didn't mean it like that, Jim."

She nodded, "I know."

* * *

The trio made it to the deck where their quarters were and split at Jamie and Bones' door. They entered the room. "You sure you're okay?" Bones asked.

She nodded, "Yea. Some cuts and bruises but I get worse sparring with Sulu." He chuckled. Jamie pulled her flight suit off and grabbed her command gold duty dress. "I don't like this Bones."

He looked at her, "Me neither." Jamie couldn't put her finger on what was wrong but she knew something was.

Jamie and Bones met Spock in the corridor and the entered the turbolift to the bridge. "Captain on the bridge," Chekov called from his station.

"Sulu, Uhura, Chekov and Gaila, you're with us. Zahra, you have the con," she told her officers as Scotty entered the bridge behind her. Jamie and the group walked into her ready room. "So, you mind telling me what the fuck is going on, Trip?"

"Cranky, much?" he teased.

She rolled her eyes, "Well, someone almost…" The chair furthest from her turned and she was face to face with Commander John Harrison. Jamie would've jumped on him but Trip motioned to Sulu and Bones to grab her, "What the fuck, Trip?"

"He's not the man you saw last night," he told her.

She looked at him, "Say again?" He hit some commands on her console; it was footage from Daystrom. He paused it when the image showed Harrison's face.

"See the shimmer?" Trip asked.

Jamie looked closer, "What is that?"

Harrison looked at her, "A nano mask. We use them for certain missions. They are convincing in person for a short time but not on holos, they give off a shimmer. The person in that jump ship isn't me. I was with Tucker and Archer last night." He motioned to her friend and Admiral Archer, who was sitting next to Pike.

"Then who is that and what's going on?" Pike asked the question of the moment.

"He's one of my father's men, I don't know which." Jamie looked at the blonde next to Harrison. The woman looked at her, "I'm Doctor Carol Marcus." Jamie nodded and looked at Trip.

"Section 31 or Redux?" she asked. It had to be one of the two.

He took a breath, "That's the thing, JT... it's both. Marcus is convinced that war with the Klingons is inevitable. He just needs a reason to approve a war. A Federation vessel destroyed on the edge of the Neutral Zone would be one hell of a reason. I acquired some Redux intel that led me to Marcus. He's using 31's resources to help Redux with this war."

She looked at Harrison, "Why you? Why give that person your face?" 

"He found out that my loyalties didn't lie with him. I have done many things in the name of protecting the Federation but I refused to start his war. Your reaction to me when you saw me was exactly why he used my face," Harrison told her. Jamie thought about it; anyone who saw him and knew who he was would at least bring him in… or at most, kill him.

"And her?" Jamie asked about Marcus' daughter. 

"She's a weapons expert," Trip told her.

Scotty stepped closer to Jamie, "The torpedoes?"

The other blond nodded, "My father gave me access to every program he oversaw. When I heard he was developing these prototype torpedoes, I went to confront him about the. He wouldn't even see me. That's when I discovered that torpedoes had disappeared from all official records."

"And then he gave them to me. Do we know what's so special about them?" Jamie asked.

Carol shook her head, "I don't… that's what has me worried."

Jamie could agree with that. "Orders, sir?" She looked at Archer.

"Don't load those torpedoes. Go bring in Harrison's doppelganger. Doctor Marcus and Trip will go with you. Pike, Reed and I will back your play from here. Get the guy and get him back to Earth. Communications blackout. Don't even comm us. Trip knows where to take him, he'll fill you in and we'll meet you there," the admiral ordered.

"I would like to accompany the Enterprise, sir," Harrison added. Archer and Pike looked at her; she nodded.

Pike stood and touched her shoulder, "Be safe, Jamie. We don't know what Marcus has up his sleeve."

Jamie looked at him, "I'll do my best, sir." The Admirals left the room and Jamie looked at Trip.

"You got a plan?"she asked her friend.

He chuckled, "Yea, but your husband ain't gonna like it."

Bones rolled his eyes, "Of course I won't."


	75. Sometimes I Really Hate Him

"Sometimes I really hate him," Bones groaned.

Jamie smiled, "No you don't. He's family, same as Pike or Spock. You hate that he shows up with crazy missions but you don't hate him." Bones looked at her, he didn't like that they were taking a team to the surface to retrieve this Section 31/Redux agent.

"Okay, I don't hate him… but I swear if you guys get yourselves killed down there, I will bring you back and kill you myself," he told her. Jamie had every faith that he could pull it off.

She smiled, "Fair enough, sweetheart." Jamie, Trip, the real Harrison, Sulu and Gaila were going down to the Ketha Province on Qo'noS. She hoped that they found this guy and got out without drawing the attention of the Klingons.

"Be careful, please." She gave her husband a quick kiss.

"Yes, dear," she told him.

Jamie left Spock in command of the Enterprise as the five officers boarded the K'normian trade ship that Trip 'acquired' and headed out; Jamie took the center pilot's chair while Trip and Sulu took the other two. Harrison and Gaila strapped into the last two seats that were in the rear of the cockpit. Jamie flew the small craft as low as she could and Trip activated a cloaking device on the ship to avoid the Klingon patrols.

"I think your husband is plotting ways to kill me," Trip joked.

Jamie chuckled at her friend, "Well, I do tend to get into trouble when you're around."

"True… but you get into trouble without me too," Trip replied, he had a point. Sulu was monitoring the area around them for interference from the Klingons. If they show up, the whole mission goes from bad to worse.

"Still nothing, ma'am," the pilot told her. Jamie didn't know if she was comforted by that.

"Found him… I think. I have four human life signs. I swear, for an anti-alien terrorist group, they pick the craziest places to hide," Trip informed her.

"I don't know, I think it was actually smart to hide here," Jamie told him. The Ketha Province was uninhabited for years, no one would come looking here.

"Set us down over there, we gotta get out." Jamie did as Trip instructed. They armed themselves before heading to where Trip found the humans. Jamie and Gaila hacked the entrance and the five officers entered the compound. It wasn't very big.

"They're in the back," Trip whispered before he nodded to Jamie and Harrison. The two officers moved to the door, Harrison in front and Jamie right behind him. As soon as Trip gave them the word, they entered the room shooting, using the stun setting. They worked together well and took out the four men in seconds. They checked the rest of the place while Trip cuffed the men, Gaila hacked the computers and Sulu stood watch.

"Got it." As soon as Gaila said the words, they collected the men and the case containing the nano mask's system before getting the hell out.

* * *

They got the men to their small ship and flew back to Enterprise. As soon as they got close enough, the men were beamed to the brig. Bones took blood samples from each man and told Jamie that he'd let her know if he found something. Scotty was having a field day with the mask.

"You could be almost anybody with this thing," he told her and demonstrated by changing to Harrison, Bones and Spock's faces. The official name was 'photostatic veil'. The damn thing was a thin polymer with nano-circuits weaved into it that made it programmable. It didn't last forever, just a day or so but the possibilities were frightening. Jamie locked it in the safe in her quarters under a biometric lock that would need her, Bones, Spock and Scotty to open.

Trip gave her coordinates –on Earth- and she instructed Sulu to get them home as fast as possible. "Does Marcus know where this place is?"

"No… me and Malcolm have been in 31 longer then he's been alive. There are some things that even he doesn't know about," Trip told her. She was gonna say something but Bones walking into her ready room stopped her.

"I got something, Jim," her husband said. She nodded for him to continue and he handed her a PADD. "These three aren't that important, they're Redux. The last guy is fleet." She looked over his file. Commander Damon Brooks was a Starfleet officer, his last known assignment was with Starfleet Intelligence. Single, no children, both parents were deceased, killed in action.

"Just the kind of guy that Section 31 recruits," she whispered. From the parts of his file that still exists, he was a damn good officer who followed orders but harbored anger and resentment over the loss of his parents. "He's me without all of you." Bones and Trip both looked at her as she continued, "If you and Chris weren't keeping an eye on me, Trip, this could've been me."

Her old friend nodded, "I know. He's not the first. 31 has a habit of… fostering existing prejudice in the name of the Federation. I was lucky enough to know the what and why of my job before I took it but a lot of these guys don't."

Jamie took a breath, "Wanna go have a chat with him?"

Trip nodded, "Sure, why not."

* * *

"I have nothing to say to you," Brooks told her as Jamie, Bones, Spock and Trip went to the brig and walked right up to his cell.

Jamie nodded, "That's okay, Commander Brooks. We got plenty." He looked at her. "Didn't think we'd figure out who you were? I've been on Section 31's wish list since I was thirteen years old and he's been 31 longer then we've been alive. There isn't a trick you've been taught that we don't already know. You don't want to tell us what's going on, fine. Of course, it might help for when you go on trial for terrorism, treason and murder."

He looked at them, "I didn't…"

Trip cut him off, "I know the guy that developed the mask you wore and the _real_ John Harrison was with me and Admiral Archer when you killed a bunch of Starfleet officers wearing his face, so save your breath. We got you. The only question is if you're going down for all of this by yourself, or if you were just following orders."

Brooks looked at them, "You don't understand."

"Then explain it to us," Bones told him.

Brooks looked at the floor, then at Jamie, "You don't know what it's like. They killed my parents. Everyone thinks that we aren't at war with the Klingons but we already are; a little fight here, an ambush there, thousands of people die. I was tired of just watching… but you wouldn't understand that."

Jamie laughed, "You do realize who you're talking to. I'm the poster child for Starfleet orphans. Your parents were killed in action so you go join up with the harbingers of destruction? That's a slap in their faces. It goes against everything they died for."

He glared at her, "You killed the man who killed your father."

Jamie nodded, "Only after he destroyed Vulcan, almost destroyed Earth and tortured the crap outta my CO. Avenging George was the least of my concern when Nero showed up." She's had to answer that question with the brass a few times, in the end, it was about saving Earth and Pike to her, not about the man who shared her DNA. She even offered to help Nero before he was killed, it was to avoid war but it was still a real offer. "Nero was business. Now, me killing Kodos was revenge, pure and simple." Spock looked at her and both Trip and Bones smirked. That man brought it on himself, she wasn't even sorry that she did it, he deserved worse than she gave him.

"You're lying," Brooks said to her.

"She's not. That's how she ended up on 31's radar. She killed him with my favorite combat knife when she was a kid, saved the whole damn colony. My advice, Brooks, tell us what's going on and we won't let her in there with you," Trip informed him.

"You wouldn't," Brooks looked at her.

Bones chuckled, "You obviously know who she is, which means you know that she would. You shot at her and her first officer… if nothing else, she'll kill you for attacking Spock just on principle." Jamie didn't say anything, she just smiled. Bones was right, even though she had no plan to go in there with him, he didn't know that.

"Angering the Captain further would be… unwise," Spock got in on the bluff, only he wasn't lying about pissing her off, she needed answers.


	76. That's Insane

They got Brooks to talk but Jamie didn't like any of it, Marcus has lost his mind. She wasn't sure what was scarier, the fact that he was trying to start a war or the fact that he built a warship under everybody's noses. Jamie was looking at the specifications in the secret Starfleet Intelligence base that they took Brooks and the Redux agents to. Archer and Reed were letting them stew. The USS Vengeance is an unmarked Federation Dreadnought-class ship built in a secret spacedock near Jupiter. It was twice as big as the Enterprise and three times faster. It had been modified with advanced weaponry and could operate with a minimal crew, one if necessary. The terrifying part was that the ship was built solely for combat. It has advanced phasers that could be fired while the ship was at warp. The ship was also equipped with additional technologically-advanced features including better shielding, more advanced transporters and enhanced warp capabilities that went up to warp ten.

"That's insane," Bones said, voicing her thoughts.

"It's a much bigger version of the ship we confiscated from Redux when we were in the academy," she told the room. That ship, the SS Relativity, was still under Trip's command and hiding somewhere, waiting for him to comm for backup. Bones, Spock, Trip, Pike, Archer, Reed, Scotty, Gaila, Carol, and Harrison all looked at her. Jamie left Sulu in command of the ship, with Uhura as his first officer; she trusted the helmsman with the safety of her crew and she knew that he would do whatever was necessary, even if the rest of senior staff was only a beam out away. Harrison filled in as much as he could.

"The Vengeance was the product of the Praxis Project. I was tasked to the Io Facility to assist with testing on the ship. I may have compromised the project a few times before abandoning my assignment," he told them.

Jamie looked at him, "Why?"

"Half the advancements on that ship should be fleet wide, not the secrets of one man. And the other half of those advancements shouldn't be on that ship at all, as they violate one treaty or another. My job is to protect the Federation, setting up a war with the Klingons is not for the benefit of the Federation at all," he told them.

Jamie smiled, "Trip trained you well." She figured that out on Qo'noS. He deferred to Trip just like she did and the way he moved was almost the same as her friend. His loyalties were with his training officer and doing what was right for the Federation, which was how it should be. "What did you guys figure out about the torpedoes?" Jamie asked Carol and Scotty. All eyes shifted to the weapons officer and the engineer.

Carol looked around the room, "The torpedoes are Class twelve photon torpedoes. They operate at a core temperature of three hundred and twenty-three degrees Celsius, and have the explosive yield of three hundred and twenty isotons and the explosive range of three hundred thousand kilometers. They run on miniaturized drive system that renders them untraceable."

Scotty nodded, "The internal guidance systems of the torpedoes were online and updated with the latest mapping coordinates to be utilized in non-Federation space. Coordinate targeting of the torpedoes is accomplished via automatic geophysical positioning."

Bones took a breath, "For those of us that don't speak weapons, that means?"

Jamie looked at him, "Advanced long-range undetectable torpedoes with a big ass payload. Very stealth and all kinds of illegal. These things violate at least a dozen regs and treaties."

The Federation had treaty agreements with a few species that banned cloaked weapons and preemptive weapons, like the stealth function that could be activated by remote capability after launch. 

"This went from bad to worse. If Marcus has more of these things…" Bones muttered. He didn't need to finish, she was thinking the same thing; they were all in for a world of hurt if Marcus launched even one of these weapons.

"From what I've gathered, this mission is the first real combat situation they've been in," Carol told the group. The woman looked defeated.

"It's not your fault," Jamie told her, "Your father did this, not you."

Carol nodded, "I know, Captain. I'm just… disappointed… ashamed." Jamie nodded; 'the sins of our fathers' as the saying goes.

"So, what do we do, sir? Between these weapons and that ship…" Jamie asked.

Archer looked to be in thought, "Do we..." Jamie's comm beeped in the middle of his statement.

"Go ahead, Enterprise." It was Uhura, they were being approached by a ship that they couldn't identify. Jamie looked at the admirals, they all knew who it was. "Shields up, go to red alert. Have Kyle beam us back in 30 seconds." Uhura acknowledged.

Archer looked at her, "Your people are the only ones with a clue as to what's really going on, he'll kill you."

She knew that, "Sir, we'll give him one hell of a fight."

The admiral nodded, "I have backup inbound, keep him in our sector and talking. We'll see what other intel Brooks will give us." Pike grabbed her arm as they beamed out, Jamie chuckled; guess he was coming with them.

* * *

"Captain on the bridge," Darwin called from Chekov's station. 

She looked around the room, "Fill me in, Sulu." The officer jumped out of the chair and gave her a status report before taking his usual station. Jamie glanced at Chekov, "ETA on the incoming ship?"

The navigator responded, "Three seconds, ma'am." Jamie took her seat and ordered them to maintain shields. They were suddenly faced by a huge ship, Jamie didn't like this at all.

Uhura called from behind her, "They're hailing us, Captain."

She nodded at the communication officer, "On screen. Broadcast ship wide and record." 

"Captain Kirk," Marcus said as he appeared.

She took a breath, "Admiral Marcus, I wasn't excepting you. It's a hell of a ship you got there." He wasn't buying it.

"And I was expecting to receive word that you completed your mission. You went to Qo'noS, what happened?" She went with the truth.

"My orders were changed, sir," she told him.

Marcus looked at her, "Who the hell has the autho… Pike, what are you doing on the Enterprise?" He knew he was caught.

"I advise standing down, Marcus," Pike informed him. Her former commanding officer continued, "It's done, we know what's going on."

Sulu whispered, "Captain, they're scanning our ship." She glanced at him before she looked at Marcus.

"Is there something I can help you find, sir?" she asked.

"Where is your prisoner, Kirk?" he asked her. She knew that his ship could rip them apart, she just had to buy time.

"Per Starfleet regulation, I returned Commander Brooks to Earth to stand trial. He's being debriefed by Archer, Reed and S.I." The color drained from his face,

"Well, shit. You talked to him," Marcus said.

She nodded, "We did, sir." Jamie knew she had to tread lightly, there was a chance he was gonna kill them just outta spite.

"In that case, Captain Kirk, there's no reason for me to leave you alive. Don't worry, I'll make this quick. And if it makes you feel better, you were all gonna die anyway." Man, Jamie hated being right. Carol ran over from the weapons station.

"Dad, what are you doing? You're going to kill a ship full of innocent people, for what? All because they don't believe in your war," the other blonde said.

Marcus looked at her, "What are you doing on that ship, Carol?" She stood tall.

"I'm doing the right thing, like you always taught me to do. These people have done nothing but sacrifice for the Federation. They've lost friends and family members fighting for what was right. All that technology and knowledge on that ship, and you're using it to wage war against your own people. The Klingons aren't the monsters in this story, you are. I am ashamed to be your daughter." Whatever Marcus was gonna say died in his throat when his men told him that there were four ships on approach. He looked at Jamie and Carol. The young captain smiled.

"That would be Admiral Archer. Stand down, lower your shields and prepare to be boarded," she instructed him.

He looked at her, "No." He closed the comm.

Sulu looked at his console, "Captain, they're…" he was cut off by the ship being fired upon. Marcus was going to kill them.


	77. You Need to Get Down Here, Jim

"You need to get down here, Jim," Bones told her over comm. She passed the con to Pike and ran to medical. Marcus almost killed them.

" _You better stop and think about what you're doing. You better think about what you did on Qo'noS. You made an incursion onto an enemy planet, and even if you got away without a trace, war is coming! Who is gonna lead us? You! If I'm not in charge, our entire way of life is decimated!_ " They used Harrison's knowledge of the ship to coordinate an attack to disable the weapons systems. Then the other ships sent over multiple away teams to secure the bridge. Unfortunately, the Vengeance had already destroyed the Bradbury and damaged the Enterprise's warp core.

_"Ma'am, the central power grid is failing," Ensign Beckett informed her._

_She nodded, "Switch to auxiliary power."_

_Harrison killed that idea, "Auxiliary power failing." They were going to be in trouble without power._

_"Captain, our ship is caught in earth's gravity," Sulu told her._

_She looked at him, "Can we stop?"_

_He shook his head, "I can't do anything, ma'am" Shit, this was not good. Trip and Chekov left the bridge to help Scotty; she would've gone too but she was needed here._

_"Sound the evacuation order," Jamie told them. One of the officers acknowledged her. She looked around, "I order you to abandon ship. I'll stay and divert power to life support and evacuation shuttle bays." Nobody moved. "Get the hell off this ship!"_

_Sulu turned his chair to face her, "We're going down together. I meant it over Vulcan and I mean it now. We aren't going anywhere." He turned around and activated his harness, Jamie did the same. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be pissed at him or proud as hell._

**_"_ ** _Gravity systems are failing. Everybody better hold the hell on!" she told the room._

_Pike, who was at Chekov's station called out, "Emergency power at fifteen percent and dropping." He didn't have to be here, he didn't have to do anything but he was working side by side with her officers._

_"Sulu, divert all remaining power to stabilizers," she ordered._

_He nodded, "I'm doing what I can, ma'am."_

_Spock spoke from behind her, "If we cannot get the power and shields back online, we are going to incinerate upon re-entry." She was adding that to the list of things that she knew but wished she didn't. All of a sudden, they leveled off and the power came back on._

_"Warp core is back online!" Pike told her._

_She nodded, "Maximum thrusters, Sulu."_

_He was working on it, "Standby. Standby." The ship stopped falling and pulled up._

_"Oh, that was close," Pike said to no one in particular._

_"Captain, shields are restored. Power is online," Spock informed her._

_Sulu chuckled, "Ma'am, altitude stabilizing."_

_Pike looked at her, "You believe in miracles, kid?"_

_She shook her head, "No such thing, that was Trip."_

She should've known he'd do something crazy to keep them in the sky. The whole ship was a mess but she made it to sickbay faster than she ever has. Bones looked at her as she ran into the room, "He's alive, barely. He took a huge dose of radiation."

She nodded as Scotty looked at her, "The housings were misaligned and there wasn't time to put on any protective gear. I was gonna go but he wouldn't let me." Jamie smiled and took Trip's hand. If it had been anyone else in the warp core without gear, they'd be dead already.

"All that joking I do with him about alien medical tech… might be the only thing keeping him alive," she whispered.

Bones nodded, "You have any details about that stuff, it might help."

She shook her head, "I wasn't supposed to know about it at all. Phlox should have Trip's real medical records. I'll get him on comms for you." She walked into Bones' office and hit the command for the bridge, Uhura was about to call for her; Archer was on the line. "Sir."

He looked at her, "We got him, Kirk. Marcus is being transported to a secure S.I. facility. His ship will be sent back to the spaceport near Jupiter, we'll have a team get started on looking it over. You and your chief engineer are more than welcome to join them at some point. How are you? Uhura said you were in medical."

She nodded, "We got major damage, multiple casualties and Trip went in the warp core." Jamie told him everything that she knew and Archer promised to send Bones everything he needed, including full access to a secure medical facility. He ordered her to take the Enterprise to Starbase One.

"The Bradbury's crew, sir?" she asked.

The old admiral took a breath, "Massive losses but more than half of the crew is still alive. So, I'll take that as a win. Get back to your people, Kirk. Tell your husband to take care of our boy."

She smiled, "I will, sir." He cut the communication and a moment later, Bones' console beeped. "I bet that's from Phlox." She was right, he sent Bones everything there was on Trip. "I don't have to tell you how classified this all is, do I?"

Bones shook his head, "Nope. You should get back to the bridge, though." She almost left the room but she stopped at turned around. "Jim?" She walked around his deck, leaned over and kissed him. When she pulled away he looked at her, "We're okay, Jim."

She nodded, "We almost weren't." He wrapped his arms around her as he stood up. Jamie doesn't know how long they stood there in each other's arms but they had a ship and crew to take care of. He pressed a kiss to her temple.

"We got work to do, darlin'."

* * *

Fighting one of your own was something that Jamie would never understand. She could almost understand what Kodos was up too and she could even relate to Nero avenging his lost home but this… it was something that she couldn't wrap her head around. The fact that the admiral's daughter was on the ship only made it worse. Carol tried to stay out of the way but the crew heard what she said to her father. The fact that she stayed with them and fought next to them against her own flesh and blood earned the crew's trust. Jamie would have to remember to recruit her for the Enterprise.

"Captain on the bridge," Sulu informed the bridge crew. Pike made a move to stand but she held up a hand.

"My chair is yours, sir," she told him. He nodded and sat back in the chair. Jamie didn't even know where to begin.

"Breathe, kid," Pike told her. She nodded and took a deep breath before rattling off orders to various crew members. Uhura contacted Starbase One and it turned out that Archer was busy, by the time they got there, the station's crew was ready for them, Harrison's name was cleared and teams of medical and engineering officers met them at the airlock. Bones left M'Banga and Chapel in charge of medical before he and Trip were beamed out. Pike just watched, and Jamie caught a smile cross his lips.

"What's with the smile, sir?"

He looked at her, "This… this is what I saw when I recruited you in Riverside. This is the Jamie Kirk I remember."

She chuckled, "Are you turning into a sap on me, old man?"

He shrugged, "Maybe a little."


	78. He's Asking For You

"He's asking for you," Bones told her. Those four words were like music to her ears. It's been two weeks since the Battle over Luna, as it was being called. Jamie was at her wits end waiting for word on Trip. She was there in a flash when Bones comm'ed her.

"Hey Bones. How is he?" Bones rubbed a hand over his face and smiled.

"He's better than me, darlin'," her husband muttered.

Jamie chuckled, "You need to get some rest."

He looked at her, "Me? When's the last time you slept? And a couple minutes here or there don't count." He had her there, she shrugged at her husband and entered Trip's hospital room.

"Hey, J.T." the engineer in the bio-bed quipped.

"'Hey, J.T.' That's it? I should kick your ass, Charles. And I'm not the only one," she told her friend.

He laughed, "Come on, Jonathan can't be that mad." She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow. He stopped laughing and looked at her. "Oh shit. I'm sorry, Jamie. There weren't any other options and I'm a little more durable than Scotty or Chekov. It was me or everyone and I figured that I at least had a chance of walking away… I'm sorry that I worried you but I couldn't let you die. You're my family and I wasn't gonna just stand there and let your ship fall outta the sky." She didn't say anything, she walked over to his bed, leaned over and hugged him. He pulled her onto the bed next to him and she didn't fight or argue. She doesn't know when but she started crying against his shoulder.

"You scared the shit outta me. You almost died, Trip. Bones and Phlox have been working their asses off to keep you alive. Marcus tried to kill us, to kill Carol. I'm just… I don't…" Jamie was truly lost for the first time in a long time and it scared her like nothing else.

"I know, little one. I know," he whispered.

* * *

At some point she must have nodded off to sleep because Bones' voice woke her up, "Should I be worried about this?" She knew he was teasing so she didn't respond.

Trip chuckled, "In all fairness, she's slept next to me _long_ before she slept next to you. Just saying." She blinked her eyes open in time to see Bones rolled his.

"As Gaila would say, 'at least I put a ring on it,'" Bones said. Jamie didn't know what was funnier, that the Orion would actually say that or the fact that her grumpy husband did. She laughed as she got up and looked between the two men.

"Wait 'til I tell Gaila."

Trip chuckled, "I like your Orion friend, she's sassy."

Jamie looked at him, "Don't even think about it."

Trip smiled, "No can do. My brain already went there. And so has yours, admit it." Bones chuckled because Trip was right, she has thought about it before.

"I'm only human and she's hot. I'll give you that one," Jamie told them. She watched as Bones checked Trip over.

"I can let you outta here tomorrow if you promise to behave. My advice, stay with Archer for a little while. I think he misses you. And she likes knowing where you are for more than a day," the doctor told his patient.

Trip nodded, "Can do, Doc."

He pointed at Jamie, "This one needs a break."

Bones chuckled, "Yea, she does but the Bradbury was destroyed, the Enterprise is a mess and we lost people. She'll crash eventually."

Jamie looked at them both, "You boys realize that I'm standing right here?"

They both nodded, "Yep."

"You two don't get to team up on me, Spock by himself is bad enough," she told them. The Vulcan seemed to be overly overprotective as of late, he didn't know why, except to say that something told him to look after her. " _He's just doing his job. As your XO and as your friend_ ," Bones said to her but that wasn't it.

"Want me to look you over? Might get him off your back," Bones offered. She nodded at her husband.

"Sure. We both know it's more for you than him though."

Trip laughed, "She got you there, Doc." Bones did a scan with his tricorder.

"You need sleep and a few more meals but other than… wait a second." Jamie glanced at Trip as Bones ran the tricorder over her again. "Can't be." 

"Can't be what, Bones?" Jamie asked. He handed her the scanner and didn't say anything. Jamie –and Trip- looked over the readout, it seemed normal to her but Trip must have noticed something.

"Well, hello," her friend quipped. Jamie looked at the screen again, she was missing something. She couldn't see anything other than her hCG levels being a bit higher than they should be.

"Oh, shit. That explains Spock's hovering over me," she muttered.

Bones nodded, "I am so…"

"Don't say it. If my math is right, and it usually is, then I missed my hypo around the same time I got stabbed on the ship. Then we had more important things to worry about and by some miracle, I haven't needed any medical attention, so you didn't need to scan me for anything and I was only in medical to hang out with you," she said. He just nodded at her. "Are you mad at me?"

That shocked Bones enough to grab his attention. "Why would I be, I'm your doctor, this is on me."

Jamie crossed her arms over her chest, "I'm not Jocelyn. I'm also not the safest person in the Federation and I've been going at full speed..." He looked at her.

"I know that. It's just… The ship. I don't know how we're gonna…" he started.

"We'll figure it out, just like we do with everything else. Bones, this is a good thing. Earlier than I planned but still a good thing," she told him and he looked at her. Bones smiled and wrapped his arms around her.

"Wait 'til we tell Jo," Bones whispered.

Trip chuckled and they both glanced at him, "Congrats, J.T. I never thought I'd live long enough to see the day." She smacked his arm. "Hey! Don't tell me you never thought about that. Wait until you tell your friends." Jamie looked at Bones.

"Can we not tell them, at least for a little while?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow, "How long do you think that'll last? I'm pretty sure that if Spock hasn't figured it out yet, he will. Gaila and Kai will too." Jamie took a breath.

"I can't believe that I didn't notice. I mean five weeks and I didn't notice. I was I was fighting Gorn four weeks ago and I went to Qo'noS nine days ago."

"Like that would've stopped you," Bones had a point.

"I don't know, Bones. That might have. You want to tell everybody for me?"

Bones shook his head, "I'll tell them with you, darlin'." She smiled, as long as nobody else tried to kill her in the next eight months, they were having a baby.


	79. You Want Me to Decide?

"You want me to decide?" Bones asked her. Jamie nodded. She came up with a couple options about their children and she wanted Bones to pick. As far as Jamie was concerned, there were only two ways to go; she stays with the kids in one place or they come along for the adventure.

"I refuse to be my mother. We're gonna be gone for five years, I just can't… I won't put them through that. I was already thinking about this before the baby because I hate that we're away from Joanna. You have to pick because I'm stuck," she told him.

He looked at her and chuckled, "No, you aren't. You know good and damn well that you couldn't stay in one place for too long."

She shrugged, "This is different. I never had a reason to stay in one place. Taking care of our children is a damn good reason. I could take a planet-side posting like going back to Iowa and working on ships or teaching at the academy or something."

Bones took a breath, "From the Hero of the Federation to shipyard worker, ha! Aside from Frank, Sam and the boys, nobody is gonna like that… not even you. The other option is to take them with us?" She nodded, families on ships wasn't unheard of; research and survey ships were already doing it for their longer tours. Their mission was one of exploration and diplomacy, if she gave the okay, some of the crew would bring their families along. "We both know what you're gonna do, Jim."

She nodded, "I'll tell Archer."

* * *

Because she was banned from helping to repair the ship by Bones, Spock, Scotty and everyone else, Jamie worked with Archer. She was tasked with leading the Starfleet Command/Internal Affairs/Starfleet Intelligence Task Force that was investigating all of Marcus' activities. She asked Archer if there was someone better suited to the job but he shook his head and told her that he preferred someone he actually trusts to run the investigation. Trip would help however he could, mostly by giving her access to encrypted data and helping her small team weed through intel.

"It's not the only ship," she told her friend. Jamie was reading over the report from the Io Facility. There were four other ships from the dreadnought-class. "They have cloaking, advanced torpedo launchers, powerful phaser arrays, the ability to transport through shields, a highly automated operations system that was enhanced so one person could command the whole ship with voice commands. This is insane. Think of all the things that we could've avoided on the Enterprise with some of this stuff." She forwarded all the technical data to Scotty and told him to go crazy with the legal enhancements.

"Malcolm talked to Marcus today, he wants to see to you," Trip told her. Jamie just nodded, she wasn't thrilled by the idea of being in the same room as him, not while she was six months pregnant. "I won't let anything happen to you, J.T."

She chuckled at him, "Am I that easy to read?"

Trip shook his head, "Nope. I just know you. You value life more than anything and usually, you can put yourself between others and danger but right now, you can't. It makes you antsy, not being able to jump in without thinking about it."

Jamie chuckled, "Pike calls it 'leaping without looking'."

Trip smiled, "That's a very apt description of your attitude towards danger. I think he'll be there too." Jamie rolled her eyes and agreed to go.

* * *

Jamie sat between Trip and Pike in the interrogation room. Usually, Reed was the person that interacted with Marcus but the man obviously had something to say. He walked in the room with his armed escort and sat down across from Jamie. No one said anything for the first few minutes, he stared at them and they stared back.

"If this is what you brought us here for, we can go," Trip said to Marcus.

"I asked to see her, not you. How far along are you?" the -former- admiral was looking at Jamie.

She took a breath, "Almost seven months."

He nodded, "I remember when Jane was pregnant with Carol, she was worried about everything. I doubt that's the case with you since you're married to a doctor. Or maybe it's worse since McCoy used to work with sick kids before he joined up. Children are interesting. Take mine for example, she won't come to see me."

She looked at him, "You tried to kill her. What did you expect her to do? Come to you with open arms and tell you that it was okay? You should feel lucky that I even showed up." He huffed, she had a point. The hardest part of all this –aside from Trip almost dying- was watching Carol. The younger Marcus was helping Jamie's team figure everything out about all the stuff they gathered but Carol looked like she was ready to break down at any moment. It was a feeling that Jamie knew all too well; knowing that your parent –Jamie's mother and Carol's father- didn't value your life. Jamie and Scotty were both keeping an eye on her.

"I guess I deserved that. How is she?" he asked with genuine concern.

"She's dealing with the fact that you tried to kill her and all of us to start a war," Pike told him.

Marcus looked at Jamie, "And you?"

She raised an eyebrow, "I'm fine."

He smiled, "No woman ever means it when they say that they're fine."

Jamie shrugged, "I do. I didn't come here to be social, Marcus. I have things to do."

He chuckled, "Right, tearing down everything I built. You think that will help? You think that war with the Klingons isn't on the horizon? You can't be that naïve."

She smiled, "I'm not, just because you think I'm an idiot doesn't actually make me one. I don't know what the future holds any more than you do. What I do know is that you sent my ship, my crew, my family out there to get slaughtered. Our job is dangerous enough but an admiral ordering us up as sacrificial lambs to the Klingons isn't part of the job. The crazy thing is that I agree with you, I think war with the Klingons is coming and we aren't even close to being prepared but where we differ is that I'm trying to help the whole Federation while you hid all your intel behind the Section 31 banner and left the rest of us to fend for ourselves. The problem is not that you believe that a war is coming, it's how you tried to start that war. Deception and deceit and murder. Do you not realize what you did? You killed almost four-hundred Starfleet officers. You almost killed your daughter, your little girl who grew wanting to be like you. I'm not the naïve one here, you are. If you honestly thought that this was the way for us to win, then you're crazy too." Jamie was calm, calmer than she usually was but she's had months to think about what she would say to him if she had the chance. He wasn't going to get under her skin, she had more important things to worry about.

Marcus took in what she said and after a minute he smiled, "I may have underestimated you, Kirk."

She chuckled, "Most people do, it's my best weapon."

He smirked, "I could've used someone like you."

Trip jumped in, "Over my dead body."

Marcus looked at him, "I would hope not. You do good work even though the Federation thinks you died a hundred years ago. The marvels of modern medicine."

Marcus looked at her, "I know she hates me but would you tell my daughter that I love her. I won't apologize for what I did but, in a way, I'm glad that I didn't succeed. War is coming, with someone like you to lead it, we might have a chance."


	80. Look at You, Stuffin' Your Face

"Look at you, stuffin' your face," Bones said before he kissed the top of her head. Jamie chuckled but kept eating. "I'm guessing that you had something to do with this Sulu."

The helmsman shrugged, "My big sister wanted Japanese food. I just happen to be a decent cook. And I don't mind making seven a.m. house calls." Sulu went back to eating as Bones chuckled and looked at Jamie.

"You got us all wrapped around your finger, don't you?" her husband asked.

Jamie smiled, "Yep." He shook his head and moved to make some coffee; Jamie had stopped drinking it so she refused to make him any.

"Morning, mama, daddy, Uncle Hiri," Jo said as she walked into the room. The girl moved to sit next to Jamie, "Good morning in there." Jo had taken to talking to the baby and because they were all in San Fran, she was living with them. Jamie ran her fingers through their daughter's hair.

"Morning, beautiful girl. How's my favorite person?"  Jamie asked.

Jo smiled, "Hungry, can I have some?" Jamie nodded and Bones handed her a fork.

"Great, now they're both eating Japanese for breakfast," he muttered.

Sulu laughed, "You do realize that I'm Japanese and I grew up eating this, right?"

Her husband nodded, "I know that. I just can't make most of it so if she wakes me up at three in the morning, I'm comm'ing you."

Jamie rolled her eyes, "That only happened once and all you had to do was cut me a slice of Mama Ella's apple pie and you ate half of it." Jo and Sulu laughed.

"She's got ya there, daddy," the young Miss McCoy told him.

He looked at his daughter, "You're supposed to be on my side."

She shook her head, "I'm on the baby's side." Jamie started laughing but stopped, they all looked at her.

"You alright, Jamie?" She looked at Sulu and took a deep breath. Her whole body felt like it was in a vice.

"They're just Braxton Hicks," she muttered.

Bones had his hands on her stomach, "They're? Since when? And how often?" She took another breath as Joanna handed Bones his tricorder.

"Since last night. And every seven or eight minutes, I think," she told him.

Her husband scanned her and then smiled, "False labor doesn't last that long. These aren't Braxton Hicks contractions, Jim, they're the real thing. I need you to stay calm. Me and Jo are gonna put on some clothes and then we're gonna go to the hospital."

"I'll drive," Sulu told her.

Jamie nodded and took another breath, "I'm early."

Bones smiled, "Not by much, 38 weeks and 3 days is perfectly safe, darlin'. Sulu will stay here while I switch outta my pajamas." He gave her a kiss before he ran to get changed. Jamie felt the tears well up.

"I don't think I'm ready, Hiri," she whispered.

Her friend smiled, "You are. And if you're not, you got the rest of us to help. Don't worry, Jamie, this baby has one hell of a family." She just looked at him. He knelt in front of her and touched her stomach, "I promise, as long as I'm breathing, your child will never be alone and he'll always be safe."

She smiled at her friend, "Thanks, Hiri."

He chuckled, "Anytime."

* * *

Bones and Jo got dressed and they all drove to Starfleet medical. Bones got her checked in and –thanks to being a doctor assigned to the hospital- into a room in no time flat. One of the nurses helped Bones get her settled before a woman that she didn't recognize walked in. "Hello, Miss Kirk."

Jamie, Bones and Sulu looked at the 'doctor' standing in front of them, Joanna was the first to speak, "Who are you?"

The woman looked at her, "Well aren't you cute. I'm Miss Kirk's doctor."

Jo crossed her arms, "No you're _not_. Daddy is mama's doctor and when he's not, Doctor Phlox is." A look crossed the woman's face before she lunged, Sulu was faster and he got to her before she got to Jamie or Jo.

"Seriously? I mean seriously?" Jamie asked. Sulu handed Bones the hypo in the woman's pocket, Jamie didn't want to know what was in it.

"Jim, just breathe," Bones told her.

"Someone just attacked me, in the damn hospital... don't tell me... to breathe." The hospital sent security to grab the woman and Harrison took custody of her when he and Trip showed up.

"I don't want to be her, whoever she is. Harrison has a rule about babies and children," her friend muttered. Jamie chuckled at Trip but she still didn't feel good about any of this. Phlox had checked on her and stepped out for a moment. Trip looked at her, "J.T., look at me." She did and he smiled, "Your guys, Hendorff and Josephs, are guarding this room, Zahra and Kai are going to switch with them in a few hours. Spock, Scotty, Chekov and your brother are on the way from Riverside and Uhura and Gaila will be in a few minutes. Sulu hasn't left the room since you got here. Relax. We won't let anything happen to you or the baby. I promise." She nodded and took a breath, she can do this. Ny and Gaila kicked Trip and Sulu out when they got there. "Come on, kid. I'll buy you a smoothie," Trip said to Joanna. She smiled and held his hand.

"Uncle Hiri, too? We were eating breakfast before this happened," Jo asked. Jamie, Ny and Gaila chuckled at her.

"That's my girl," Jamie muttered.

* * *

The next eight hours passed by in a blur but when that moment came, it was like nothing in the whole world. "Alright, Jamie. I need you to push." Jamie did what Phlox told her to do, Bones was right next to her. She felt a ton of pressure and some pain, then it was gone. She didn't know what they were all doing down there, she didn't care, she just wanted to see her baby. "Well hello, little one," she heard Phlox say right before her son started to cry.

Jamie registered Ny's voice, "Oh guys… he's gorgeous." Gaila was still holding one of her hands, the Orion was giddy.

Her friend looked at her, "Nice work, mama."

Bones pressed a kiss to her head, "I love you, darlin'."

She smiled, "I love you too. Is he okay?" Gaila and Bones released her hands just as Phlox put the baby in her arms.

"He's perfect," the Denobulan told her. She looked at the little boy, Phlox was right, he was perfect. After being fussed over, checked over and feeding her son, they finally let her rest. She drifted off as her husband and daughter fussed over the baby.

* * *

"He looks like you, daddy," she heard Joanna say. Jamie smiled, it was true that kid was all Bones and the only thing that was even remotely Kirk was the eyes, but they could change as he got older. There was a knock on the door to her hospital room, it could be a dozen people but Jamie knew who it was.

"Come in, guys," she said. Sam, Trip, Spock, Chris, Scotty, Pasha, Hiri, Ny and Gaila walked in with Pete and Alex.

Her brother walked straight to her and kissed her on the head, "Hey, Jimmy. How you feeling?"

She looked at him, "Like I just had a baby."

He chuckled, "That bad and that good all at once, huh? Aury said it was the most painful and joyous experience she'd ever had." Jamie chuckled, that was about right. Her whole body felt like it was run over by a hoverbus but she'd so do it again in a heartbeat, not today though.

Bones was sitting in a chair with the baby in his arms, Joanna was standing next to him while Peter had climbed up on the bed to hug Jamie. "Be careful with your aunt, kiddo," Sam warned.

Peter just nodded at his dad. Chekov helped him up. Jamie smiled, "Hey buddy, what's up?"

He looked at her, "I just wanted a hug, Aunt Jimmy."

She smiled and wrapped her arm around him, "No arguments from me." Gaila ran her hand through Jamie's hair, "I know, I look like hell."

Trip chuckled, "Actually, you look beautiful. You got a mama glow going on." She rolled her eyes and looked at Gaila, the Orion nodded, she understood what Jamie was thinking.

"So, what's the little laddie's name?" Scotty asked them.

Jamie smiled, "David George Charles McCoy." Joanna smiled, "After grandpa, grandpa and Uncle Trip?" Bones chuckled, "Sorta. David is after dad and Charles is after Trip but George is actually after your Uncle Sam."

Her brother looked at her, "You gave him my name?"

She nodded, "Don't look so surprised." He looked down at the little bundle in Bones' arms.

"Hey Georgie, welcome to the family, little man," her brother whispered.

Jamie chuckled, "No, we are not calling him Georgie, Sam. Try something else." He ignored her to make faces at the baby as their family looked on.


	81. Do You Know Who She Is?

"Do you know who she is?" Jamie looked at her husband as they sat in their living room with Trip, Pike, Archer and Harrison. She'd been home the past few weeks but they kept her updated on the woman that Sulu took down at the hospital.

"She's one of Marcus' old agents, Carrie Stevenson. She wasn't the only one involved, someone that I haven't identified yet attacked Carol and Chapel at the nurse's apartment. They're okay, unfortunately for their attacker, they fought back and he was stabbed with the hypo he had and it killed him. According to Trip's contacts, the attacks on you and Carol are both unsanctioned hits. I found out that Stevenson was hoping to move up in Section 31 or impress the bosses by getting rid of the people she deemed responsible for Marcus' defeat. In reality, all she did was piss everybody off by attacking you and your family while you were going into labor," Harrison told them. Bones looked the agent and Jamie knew what he was gonna ask.

"We're as safe today as we were yesterday. I dare someone to come after us. I really do. When it was just me, I didn't give a shit but come near my family and I _will_ kill someone," she said. Jamie looked at Harrison, "Is that it or are they gonna keep coming?"

He shook his head, "It's been passed down the wire that you and your family is off limits. And that anyone who tried to harm you would have to deal with the woman who saved Earth. I may have let it slip that Nero and his crew weren't your first kills. Just in case. Starfleet Intelligence is taking over some of the projects that Marcus had in the works and I'll be overseeing them, I will also personally be keeping an eye on any threats to your lives."

Jamie nodded, "Sounds good, Harrison. Thank you."

He smiled, "No need to thank me. I'm just glad I could be helpful."

Jamie looked at Trip, "What about you?"

He smiled, "I'm gonna get back out there and keep saving the galaxy as a free agent for the new Chief of Staff." Jamie chuckled. There were two kinds of agent, those like Marcus and this Stevenson chick who didn't care who was killed in the process of completing the objective. Then there were those like Trip and Harrison who didn't believe the unnecessary loss of life. They weren't gonna destroy the Section 31 yet, it would do too much damage to the Federation but they still had that card to play. Redux was done though, Trip and Harrison got rid of them.

"We have a new Chief of Staff?" Bones asked Archer. As the Commander in Chief of Starfleet, the most senior officer in the fleet who only takes orders from the Federation Council, he would know. Archer nodded, "I needed a new Commanding Officer, Starfleet Command and a Chief of Staff of the Federation Starfleet. Barnett is the new Commander, Starfleet and Pike is the new Chief of Staff. Reed wanted to stay in charge of Starfleet Intelligence."In other words, Barnett was in charge of the people and Pike was in charge of the the different branches of the fleet.

Jamie looked at him, "I'm friends with the third highest officer in the fleet? Sweet. I bet some people are pissed off."

Pike chuckled, "A few who wanted to be in charge aren't happy. I would've turned it down but that kind of thing was how Marcus ended up in command to begin with, too many good officers wanting to stay in the action and letting the power seekers rise in the ranks." Man, that was the truth. Jamie knew that Archer had to call in all kinds of pull to get Barnett and Pike as the number two and three officers in the fleet but Jamie thought they would all be better for it. There were too many politics going on at the top and it had to change, Archer had been fighting for what was best for the fleet, even when the people who should've backed him up didn't. He had that backup now; Archer, Barnett and Pike would make a good commanding, first and second officers of Starfleet.

Before anyone could say anything, baby David made his presence known. "I got him," Bones told her before leaving the room.

Archer laughed, "I almost forgot that the baby was here, he's quiet like you were."

She looked at him, "You knew me as a baby?"

He nodded, "Not a lot. All that 'Kelvin Baby' stuff was going on. I got to hold you once, I'll send you the holo. You were quiet, I think even then you were aware of the world around you and you took everything in." Jamie smiled, it was rare to hear stories about herself when she was little from someone other than Sam. Bones walked in with the baby in his arms, smiling at him. Jamie was a sucker for Bones with the baby, seeing her husband so wrapped up in their son was the hottest thing she's ever seen and it made her heart melt.

"That kid is gonna be a heartbreaker," Pike told the room.

Bones chuckled, "What do ya think, little guy, is Grandpa Chris right? Are you gonna run around breaking little girl's hearts?" Jamie chuckled, she holds the honor of making _The_ Admiral Christopher Pike speechless with two words. She referred to him as Grandpa Chris before she was released from the hospital and the look on his face was priceless. " _I… kid… really?" She smiled, "You're practically my dad. So, yes, you're Grandpa Chris and no, you can't talk me out if it."_ Pike reached for the little boy and Bones placed him in the older man's arms.

" _And_ , we lost Pike," Trip joked but it was true, David had the Admiral's full attention. Jamie, Bones, Archer and Harrison all laughed as they watched Pike talk to the baby, ignoring the rest of them. Jamie hopped up, grabbed the holo-imager and took a holo while he wasn't paying attention.

Archer laughed, "And he didn't even notice." They all talked some more but eventually the guys had to get back to work. Jamie drifted off to sleep on the couch next to her husband, who was holding their son.

* * *

When she woke up, she was alone, "Bones?"

He walked into the room, "Yea, darlin'?" She looked around and he smiled, "He's asleep. You'll have to feed him soon, I would but…"

She chuckled, "You don't have boobs. You just like 'em." She rolled her eyes at the smirk on his face.

"Well, yea. Yours anyway,"he told her.

She gave him a look, "I look like hell, I'm exhausted and you're flirting with me?"

He smiled, "Yep. I think you're beautiful, even when you're exhausted, darlin'."

She chuckled, "I think you're crazier than me sometimes but I love you."

He gave her a kiss, "I love you too, Jim."

"So, do you wanna know what our daughter asked me the other day?"

He sat down next to her, "Sure."

Jamie smiled, "She wants to learn how to fight so that she can protect her brother."

"She's too young," he told her.

Jamie took a breath, "I wasn't, neither was Gaila or Hiri."

He looked at her, "That's different, Jim. You guys learned when you were kids out of necessity."

Hikaru told her his story about when he was a kid on Ganjitsu. In 2248 when his family lived in Ishikawa, a Klingon named The Albino attacked the colony. Sulu was only eleven years old but he managed to stop the attack, saving his parents and the colony. Unfortunately, it resulted in the death of one of Sulu's close friends. He still feels guilty about it. Gaila learned to fight in the slave trade, she didn't really have a choice in the matter.

"Bones, she's not going to be eleven her whole life. And as much as it pains me to say it, she's the daughter of two Federation heroes. At the very least, she needs to be able to break out of holds and run. I'll teach her. Nothing crazy, just defense and evasion."

Bones looked at her, "You'll teach her?" Jamie nodded. "None of that fancy stuff you and Sulu do?"

She shook her head. "Okay."


	82. You Got This, Jim

"You got this, Jim," Bones told her before he kissed her cheek and went to sit in the audience. She couldn't believe that it's been over a year since Marcus tried to kill them. Everything happened so fast, it was unreal.

As soon as Phlox gave the all clear to workout, she did. At first, she took it easy but she got back into her hand to hand with Sulu. Jamie was lucky, she bounced back pretty quick. Bones went back to work before she did, mostly because she eased back into it. Some days she even took baby David with her, though Pike would usually take his grandson and leave her office. Bones would laugh at her when she comm'ed him about it, " _If mama was here all the time, she'd do it too._ " It was true, Mama Ella, Donna and Fred were in town for a while and they took turns taking her son. Toss in all their friends popping up to see the baby and Jamie had to almost set a schedule for the kid. Joanna got a kick out of it and would come home from school asking _who_ had her brother.

All the work that they had all been doing was for this day and Jamie was 'asked' to speak, in other words, she knew it was an order from Barnett; she wasn't thrilled about it but she did as she was told to do. Contrary to popular belief, she didn't like being the center of attention. She looked out at her husband and their friends as she took the podium.

"There will always be those who mean to do us harm. To stop them, we risk awakening the same evil within ourselves. Our first instinct is to seek revenge when those we love are taken from us. But that's not who we are. War is instinctive, but the instinct can be fought. We can admit that we're killers, but we're not going to kill today. That's all it takes, knowing that we're not going to kill, today. We're going to stumble, make mistakes. I'm sure more than a few along the way but we must learn from those mistakes. That's what life is all about. We are here today to rechristen the USS Enterprise and to honor those who lost their lives one year ago. When Christopher Pike first gave me his ship he had me recite the Captain's oath. I didn't appreciate those words at the time but now I see them as a call for us to remember who we once were and who we must be again. To remember that the Federation wasn't started to wage war but as an idea of fostering unity between different beings across the universe. That oath... Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of Starship Enterprise. Her mission is to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations. To boldly go where no one has gone before."

Jamie took a breath and looked at all the assembled officers, she could see some sit up taller and others with tears in their eyes. After a beat, the place erupted into applause. Jamie stepped back and looked at Archer, who put his hand on her shoulder. He took the podium again and everyone calmed down, he spoke.

"Mark my words, that woman is gonna change the universe… again." Everyone chuckled as he went into his speech. Jamie looked at her friends and smiled at Gaila, who gave her a thumbs up. That girl has spent way too much time around humans.

Jamie tried to make a clean get away after the speeches were done but she got pulled into holos and conversations with people. She really just wanted to get to Bones and their friends and leave.

"Captain Kirk." She turned and found herself face to face with Sarek.

"Ambassador, it's good to see you," Jamie told him. It was the truth; after the whole Babel thing, she found herself just as worried about the Vulcan as his son was.

"It is pleasing to see you as well. My son sent me a holo of himself with your child, I believe it is customary to offer congratulations."

She smiled, "Yes, thank you. David has captured everyone's attention, including Spock's. Your son will make an excellent father, I can't wait to see his children." Spock and Uhura needed to quit stalling; everyone who knew them, knew they were getting married one of these days. Life was too short to waste it. Sarek looked at her with _amusement_ –at least that's what she thought it was- and agreed.

"I too am curious about my future grandchildren," the Vulcan told her. She continued to talk with him before she got dragged into a conversation about politics. Luckily, Archer pulled her away and practically pushed her outside.

"I caught your speech," Jamie rolled her eyes at Trip.

"I thought that they were telling people that you aren't dead?"

He chuckled, "Just on the paperwork. I'm not broadcasting my presence to the universe, might need to go off the grid for something. Besides, I hate these things as much as you do." She could understand where he was coming from, Trip was always thinking three steps ahead of everybody. They both looked out at the city, "You ready, J.T.?"

She smiled, "Yea, I'm ready, Trip. I'm gonna miss you."

He smiled as he pulled her into a hug, "I'll be around."

* * *

"Captain on the bridge," Chekov called from his chair.

She chuckled, "How do you always do that?"

He shrugged, "No clue."

Jamie walked over to the command chair, "Having fun, Mister Sulu?"

Hikaru smiled, "Captain does have a nice ring to it. The chair's all yours, ma'am."

She sat down and hit the comm, "Mister Scott, how's our core?"

"She's excellent, like her chief engineering officer, if I do say so myself," he told her.

Jamie chuckled, "God, I love ya, Scotty."

She heard him chuckle, "I love you too, lass. Seriously, we're ready for a long journey."

Jamie smiled, "Glad to hear it." She closed the connection and looked at her husband, "Are you gonna be a grouch the whole time? We haven't left yet, we could still stay."

Bones looked at her, "I can't believe that I agreed to this."

She hopped up and stood in front of him, "Come on, Bones. It's gonna be fun. And you've got me, Jo and David. What's better than that?"

He rolled his eyes, "I agreed to five years in space." To say that Jamie was shocked that he wanted to stay on the ship was a massive understatement. Getting the fleet to approve it was actually easier than getting Bones to. They wouldn't have the only children on the ship, there was a total of seven. Joanna was the oldest having just turned twelve and David was the youngest at six months.

Carol looked at Bones, "Doctor McCoy, you should be glad, it's nice to have a family." Jamie nodded at the Weapon's Officer.

Uhura looked at Bones, "She's right, nothing beats family, Leonard."

He looked around the bridge, "Are you all gonna team up on me?"

Jamie shrugged, "Just be glad that Gaila and Chapel aren't on the bridge." He chuckled as she touched his shoulder before she walked over to Spock, "Commander."

"Captain."

She looked at him, "Where should we go, Spock?"

He looked out the viewscreen, "As a mission of this duration has never been attempted, I defer to your good judgment, my friend."

Jamie sat in the command chair and looked at Sulu, "Helm, take us out."

He nodded, "Aye, Captain."

_The end... and the beginning..._


End file.
